


New Kid on the Block

by worldswrst (thehotinpsychotic)



Category: RuPaul's Drag Race RPF
Genre: High School AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-01
Updated: 2019-11-18
Packaged: 2020-02-10 20:46:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 45
Words: 50,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18668065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thehotinpsychotic/pseuds/worldswrst
Summary: When Danny starts attending Matt’s high school, Matt takes an interest in the soft spoken boy as his whole world starts changing.





	1. Chapter 1

When he wakes up for school, Matt is no more excited for this day than he is any other in the hellscape that is his high school. He grabs an apple from the bowl on the counter, walking past his brother and immediately being pulled into a headlock. “Fuck off!”

 

Jared rustles Matt’s hair, then shoving him towards the door. “Your boyfriend is waiting outside.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “Brian is not my boyfriend.” He steps out onto the porch to see his friend sitting on the steps scrolling through his phone. “You’re early.”

 

Brian turns and springs to his feet, beginning to walk towards the school with Matt. “I want that worm.”

 

“You mean penis?” Matt asks. 

 

Brian shoots him a look, laughing nonetheless. “You dirty bitch.”

 

Matt groans, whining, “It’s really Monday, huh?”

 

“Oh, you bitch so much,” Brian says. 

 

“I bitch the perfect amount for it being Monday,” Matt insists. As he and Brian continue down the street, they watch a dark haired boy dressed in flannel dart out of a house, walking at a quick pace. “Who is that?”

 

Brian shrugs. “Maybe he’s new. He’s got a cute butt.”

 

Matt elbows Brian. “Go tell him that.”

 

Brian laughs. “Yeah right; he’s in a full gay panic walk. I’m not fast, Matt. I can’t believe you’re just noticing now.”

 

Matt chuckles. “He’s kinda cute… from behind, that is.”

 

“What if he turns around and he’s a total butterface?” Brian gasps. “Snaggletooth, acne, cleft chin.”

 

“I think cleft chins are sexy,” Matt tells.

 

Brian rolls his eyes. “You also think moustaches are sexy.”

 

“I don’t shame you for being into bears,” Matt retorts.

 

Brian scoffs. “Who’s not into bears?” When Matt raises his hand, Brian takes it as an opportunity to tickle him, making Matt laugh uncontrollably before shoving him away finally.

 

“Do not do that; I’ll kick your ass,” Matt threatens.

 

Brian giggles at that. “You’re so gay; you couldn’t kick a mailbox’s ass.”

 

“Why are we friends again?” Matt jokes. The pair tread onto the school lawn, Matt taking the lead as they delve into the crowded main hallway.

 

“Do you have a test today?” Matt asks. He stops at his locker, opening the door to reveal the slew of boyband pictures taped to it. 

 

Brian groans. “Yes; I’m probably going to get like 40 percent.”

 

“Don’t speak that into existence,” Matt laughs. 

 

Brian elbows Matt, gesturing at a teen down the hallway fumbling with his locker. “Is that the cute butt that blessed us this morning?”

 

Matt peers over, watching the unknown boy with dark hair collect his things from his locker. “You know what, it must be.”

 

Brian gasps. “Should I go talk to him? I bet he’s a total daddy.”

 

Matt snorts, pushing his friend lightly. “You are such a dick pig.”

 

“At least I admit it!” Brian replies. “You try to be all, ‘ooooh I’m Matt! Sex is gross! I just want a boy to hold my hand and tell me I’m handsome, that’s all! I wouldn’t ever want to choke on his dick! I’d rather lay in bed and watch Disney movies than have sex!’”

 

“I really hate you sometimes,” Matt giggles. He gazes back over his shoulder for the boy in flannel, but he’s nowhere to be seen. “Ugh, he’s gone.”

 

“Now we’ll never know if he’s daddy,” Brian sighs.

 

“I’m going to throw you out of a window!” Matt threatens. 

 

The two make it to their first class, sitting towards the back corner like they usually do. They’re engaging in casual conversation when the boy they’d seen earlier enters the classroom, looking nervous and shy.

 

“Oh my god,” Brian whispers. “He’s not a butterface! He’s actually really cute! Abort! Abort!”

 

Matt pouts. “Aw, he looks scared.”

 

Brian shrugs. “Hey, if I were a new kid, I would be scared, too.”

 

“Do you think he has any friends yet?” Matt asks.

 

“Probably not,” Brian answers. “Poor kid.”

 

“We should introduce ourselves to him,” Matt suggests. 

 

Brian gags dramatically, insisting, “He’s totally daddy. If I were to introduce myself, I would humiliate myself and the whole illusion would shatter. It’s not happening. I’ll just admire and then later jerk off from a distance.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “You’re such a fucking horndog; you’re as bad as a straight guy.”

 

Brian gasps effeminately, placing a hand over his chest. “You take that back!”

 

The teacher enters and takes his position towards the front of the room. Early on in the period, he shares, “We have a new student with us today. Danny, would you like to introduce yourself?”

 

The dark hair boy looked up meekly from his desk. “No, thank you. I’d rather not.”

 

Looking moderately taken aback, the teacher replied, “Oh, um, okay. So, let’s get to talking about the Civil War, guys.”

 

Throughout the class, Matt finds his eyes wandering over to the new boy across the room. His eyes trace every hint of a wave in his dark hair, his dopey green eyes, his full lips. The boy has his head ducked down into a notebook, probably drawing or something. Matt’s thankful for that; if the boy weren’t so preoccupied, there’d be no way he’d be able to miss Matt staring him down.

 

“Dude, you’ve been staring for a long time,” Brian whispers.

 

Matt jumps a little, turning to face his friend who is smiling smugly. “He’s just so cute.”

 

Brian sighs. “You’re right. I want him to stick my head into a toilet and call me a faggot.”

 

Matt stifles a chuckle. “You are such a fucking weirdo.”

 

Brian flicks his tongue at Matt, batting his eyelashes as he says, “I’m your weirdo.”

 

Matt merely rolls his eyes, fixing them on the boy once more. Matt notices the boy’s right leg bouncing rapidly against the ground, practically shaking his desk. The boy seems unaware of this, attention still focused on his notebook and not on the riveting discussion of the Civil War that the class was slowly suffering through. 

 

The bell can’t ring soon enough, and when it does, the boy, Danny, darts out of the room so quickly that Matt doesn’t get a chance to talk to him. He groans loudly, beginning to collect his things. “I’m going to talk to him by the end of the day; I’m going to make sure of it.”


	2. Chapter 2

After the final bell rings, Danny wastes no time gathering his things at his locker before rushing out of the doors. Just last week, he had a great deal of misfortune when it came to running into his bullies on his walk home. As he all but sprinted through the grass, he could only hope that today he would be able to pass them without being detected. 

 

“Hey, faggot.”

 

Danny groans, wanting nothing more than to sink into the ground itself and disappear. Three boys, why’d there have to be three of them? “H-hi.”

 

“H-h-hi,” one of the teens mocks, eliciting laughter from his friends. “You really talk like a queer, you know that?”

 

Instead of asking what it means to talk like a queer, Danny tries to steady his racing pulse, telling, “I guess so.” He’s then shoved to the ground, falling back on his ass harshly. He inches back against the dirt, pleading, “Leave me alone, okay? I won’t bother you.”

 

“Your face bothers me, spic,” another tells. Danny cringes at the word, quite honestly taking more offense at being called a spic than a faggot. He grabs Danny by the shirt, ordering, “Fucking stand up.” 

 

Danny goes limp in his arms, trying to use his weight against the larger teen. All he can think is, “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.”

 

“Hey!” someone calls.

 

The kid’s head jerks back in the voice’s direction, still holding onto Danny by the front of his shirt. “What?”

 

“Is there a problem?” the person asks. He’s a boy who looks to be about Danny’s age with messy blonde hair and a septum ring. 

 

“Beat it, Lent,” one of them barks. “Unless you want to get your ass kicked, too.”

 

The kid raises an eyebrow, asking, “Oh?” He withdraws a taser from his pocket, holding it out in the group’s direction and sparking it up. “Party! Who wants to get lit up?”

 

The kid manhandling Danny immediately shoves the smaller teen back to the ground, cursing, “You’re a pussy, Matt. Let’s go, guys.” And just like that, the trio is on their way, heads ducked low to the ground as their shoes scrape against the pavement.

 

Breathless, Danny asks, “So, you’re Matt?”

 

The boy cracks a smile, returning the taser to his pocket before stepping to Danny, offering a hand. “Yep. You’re Danny, right?”

 

Danny gratefully accepts the hand. As he’s pulled back to his feet, he asks,“How did you know?”

 

Flapping his hand, Matt explains, “We have first period together.” Gesturing to the group of retreating teens, he asks, “What the hell was that about?”

 

Danny shrugs. “Oh, those are just the guys that beat me up and call me tranny. It’s whatever.”

 

Matt’s eyes double in size as he asks incredulously, “They treat you like that?” 

 

Danny’s green eyes drift to the ground as he mumbles, “It’s not a big deal, really.”

 

Matt’s eyes remain fixed on the boy, asking, “Do you want me to walk you home? Make sure that they don’t come back?”

 

Danny finally cracks a smile, nodding. “I would like that.”

 

Matt steps towards Danny, gesturing as he prompts, “Lead the way.”

 

Danny steps forward, Matt in tow. The two boys walk in silence for a while before Matt asks, “So, you’re new, right?”

 

Danny nods. “Yeah, this is only like my second week here.”

 

“Do you like it here so far?”

 

Danny shrugs, admitting, “People are kinda assholes, but that’s a universal thing, not a Buffalo thing.”

 

“What’s those guys’ deal?” Matt asks. When Danny seems taken aback, he stammers, “I-I mean you don’t have to tell me; it’s really not my business.”

 

Danny shakes his head, saying, “No, it’s fine. I have gym with a couple of them and… I don’t know, we just don’t get along.” 

 

“I’m sorry,” Matt offers.

 

Danny looks over to him. “It’s not your fault.”

 

Silence, again. “So, are you a freshman?”

 

“I’m a sophomore,” Danny answers. “You?”

 

“Sophomore,” Matt shares. “If you want, I can introduce you to my friends sometime; they’re pretty cool.”

 

Danny can’t help but grimace just a little. “Yeah, maybe.”

 

“I just feel bad because you don’t have any friends,” Matt admits. Uh-oh. Foot in mouth disease. 

 

Only, Danny isn’t mad, merely bobbing his head as he agrees, “I guess I’m just shy. It’s weird not knowing anyone, but I feel like everybody’s all in such close groups and I’m just an outsider.”

 

“I never had to move anywhere, so… I don’t really know what that’s like,” Matt tells honestly.

 

“We’re almost there,” Danny says. He’s quiet for a moment, before adding timidly, “Thank you, by the way. For walking me home and stuff.”

 

“No problem,” Matt assures. “It’s the least I can do.”

 

“Let me know if I’m asking too much, but would you mind walking me home every day? I just can’t seem to get away from those guys no matter what I do,” Danny confesses. 

 

Matt’s heart flutters a bit at the prospect of spending that little sliver of time each afternoon with Danny. “Yeah, it’s no problem. Your house is actually on the way to mine, so it’s no big deal.”

 

Danny cracks a grin. “Party.”

 

“Maybe you should get a taser, too,” Matt suggests. “Mine always makes me feel safer; you never know what might happen.”

 

Danny shakes his head vehemently. “I don’t trust myself in close hand combat; I’m too clumsy for that shit. I’d need something more like pepper spray, I think. It’d be hard for even me to mess that up.”

 

Matt laughs, telling, “You know, with your luck it’d be facing the wrong way around and you would not only have an attacker on your hands but a face full of mace as well.”

 

Danny giggles. “You know what? You’re probably right. I think the best precaution is to never leave my house again. Ever.”

 

“It’s the only way,” Matt agrees. 

 

“Listen, let me know if this is weird but, do you maybe want to hang out sometime?” Danny asks. “You know, since I don’t have any friends.”

 

Matt blushes a little, stammering, I-uh yeah, that’d be great. I really only have one friend so, more are always welcome.”

 

Danny withdraws his cellphone from his pocket and tosses it to Matt without a warning, making the other boy squeak as he tries not to fumble it. “Put your number in and I’ll text you.”

 

Typing in his number, Matt replies, “Yeah, great.” He jogs a little to catch up to Danny, handing his phone back wordlessly.

 

The two don’t walk much further before Danny says, “Well, this is me.” He turns to Matt, telling, “Thanks again, for walking me home. That was really sweet of you.”

 

Matt shrugs. “Hey it’s no prob-” he’s cut off as Danny wraps him into a hug, then turning and skipping into his home. 

 

Matt sighs, finishing his walk home by himself, already missing the boy who had shared the space next to him.

  
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

The next morning on their walk to school, when Matt sees Danny exit his home, he all but sprints to catch up to the boy, leaving Brian behind without a thought.

 

“Danny! Good morning!” Matt calls, waving.

 

Danny pulls his earbuds out, giving a toothy grin as he replies, “Morning.”

 

Matt grabs Danny’s arm, pulling him to a stop. He jerks his head back towards Brian, telling, “Let’s wait for my friend.”

 

When Brian finally catches up, he says, “Thanks for leaving me, slut.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes, telling Danny, “Danny, this idiot is my best friend, Brian. Idiot, this is Danny.”

 

Danny flashes another smile. “Hi, Brian.”

 

Brian grins back. “Hey, handsome.”

 

Danny turns bright red immediately as the trio shuffle down the sidewalk. As Danny isn’t looking, Brian elbows Matt and gives the blowjob gesture.

 

“You’re disgusting,” Matt mouths.

 

Brian recognizes what Matt is saying immediately, having been told this enough times in the past to clock the words at once. He only sticks his tongue out at Matt, then asking Danny, “Do you have any siblings?”

 

Danny fakes a gagging noise. “God, no. What about you guys?”

 

“Me neither. I was too much for my parents; they didn’t need any more of that,” Brian replies. 

 

“I have a brother and he’s an asshole,” Matt answers. 

 

“Your brother is a straight up bully,” Brian agrees.

 

Matt nods. “I know.”

 

“That sucks,” Danny sympathizes. “Having bullies at school are bad enough; I couldn’t imagine fucking living with mine.”

 

Brian’s jaw drops a little. “You’re getting bullied?”

 

Danny immediately retracts, insisting, “It’s not really a big deal.”

“I’m escorting him home after school because I carry a taser,” Matt shares. 

 

“Matt, I didn’t know that you ever did nice things,” Brian says. “I mean, I’ve heard rumors, but then again, I always hear rumors about you.”

 

Matt hits his friend on the arm, making Brian whine. The two eventually reach the school, and Danny asks as they step into their first period class, “So like, what’s this teacher’s deal?”

 

“What do you mean?” Matt replies. 

 

Danny shrugs, telling, “I don’t know he’s just… eccentric? Is that the word for it?”

 

Brian nods enthusiastically, agreeing, “Eccentric is the only acceptable word to describe that man. Danny, you should sit with us.”   
  


Looking slightly taken aback, Danny responds, “Um, yeah sure!” He sits next to Brian, Matt seated in the desk in front of him. Matt can’t help but to pout a little because he knows that being seated in front of Danny means that he won’t be able to pass the period by staring at him. Their teacher eventually enters and starts the lesson, and Matt is having the hardest time being able to keep his eyes open. The ever-so-riveting details of the Civil War being relayed in his teacher’s droning voice isn’t exactly helping the situation, either.

 

Suddenly, Matt is kicked on his calf and he jolts awake, turning to look at Danny behind him, who is grinning. “What is it?”

 

“You were snoring,” Danny chuckles. “Thought I’d bail you out before the teacher noticed.”

 

Matt glances back over at the teacher, who is currently outlining notes on the board. “Thanks.”

 

“You talk in your sleep, too,” Danny adds, making Matt blush involuntarily. 

 

When class is finally dismissed, Matt tells Danny, “You should totally join us at lunch.”

 

“Sounds good!” Danny replies. “That bathroom stall was getting old, anyways.”

 

Once he leaves, Brian immediately pulls on Matt’s arm, telling, “He’s hot, Matt. He’s hot and I want to fuck him…. No, I want him to fuck  _ me. _ ”

 

Matt snatches his arm away. “I don’t think that you’re his type.”

 

Offended, Brian scoffs. “And what  _ is  _ his type?”

 

“Honestly, I’m not sure,” Matt answers. “But I’m pretty sure that you’re nobody’s type.”

 

Brian pushes him. “You fucking bitch! You are so rude!”

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “I can get away with saying it because I love you. And don’t even try to argue, because you know it’s true.”

 

Pouting, Brian sighs, still allowing, “You’re right.” As the two continue down the hallway, he continues, “I just want to get to know him better. I think that if I spend more time with him, my sparkling personality is sure to draw him in.” 

 

“Because your looks won’t.”

 

“Girl, are you on your period? Did your sugar daddy’s check bounce? What’s going on with Matt?” Brian asks, dramatically placing one hand on Matt’s arm and brushing the boy’s curly hair from his face with the other.

 

Matt cracks up, flailing to get away from Brian, warning, “I swear to god, I’m going to smack you!”

 

“If you’re going to smack me, smack me on the ass, and smack me hard,” Brian retorts.

 

Matt snorts, “Please, you couldn’t pay me.”

 

Brian smacks Matt on the ass as he leaves, calling, “See you at lunch!”

 

“I hate my friends,” Matt murmurs as he steps into his second period class. Throughout the lesson, although he is fully awake by the grace of god, he can’t help but to let his thoughts wander to Danny. He’s preoccupied, vacant. After what seems like a century, the bell rings and it takes him a moment and a quick scan of the room to realize it's even gone off. He spends the rest of his morning floating about in this manner, distant, yet present in the most minimal way possible. He now understands why everybody thinks he has an aloof demeanor; hey, they’re probably right. 

 

When lunch finally rolls around, Matt seats himself at his and Brian’s usual table. Brian joins him shortly thereafter, and he tries to scan the room to catch Danny’s attention when he walks in. Seeing Danny enter at the east door, Matt smiles and waves, catching the boy’s eye. Danny waves back, stepping forward only to be tripped by one of the seated jocks he was passing. 

 

The lunchroom seems to freeze as every head in the room collectively turns to see what had happened. Then the laughter starts. Danny, still sprawled out across the ground in all his gangly glory, is beet red and practically on the brink of tears.

 

Matt balls his fist, but to his surprise, Brian stands up, storming over to the table. “Hey! Fuckhead!”

 

The jock immediately stands, peering down at Brian with a look of thinly veiled disgust. 

 

Brian nods towards Danny, telling, “You tripped my friend. Tell him you’re sorry.”

 

The jock merely smirks, shoving Brian back harshly onto his ass. His head nearly clips a table, but he’s okay, just now also red in the face and unsure of what to do. The laughter halts, and it’s dead silent as Brian slowly stands, wordlessly helping Danny to his feet before sulking back to his own table. The bully smirks triumphantly, sauntering back to his own seat and calling with a cupped hand, “Fags!”

 

Once the two boys sit down, Matt asks, “Oh my god, are you guys alright?”

 

Still blushing, Brian shakes his head. “That guy is such a fucking prick.”

 

Danny bobs his head in agreement. Turning to Brian he says, “Thank you for sticking up for me.” With that, he pecks Brian once on the cheek, quickly shying away after. Even though he’s still pissed, Matt can see Brian’s expression soften, his muscles relax just the slightest bit. 

 

“I’m glad I get to walk you home,” Matt tells Danny. “And I get to, I don’t have to. I’m lucky.”

 

Danny can’t help but roll his eyes, giggling, “Whatever, cheeseball.”

 

Matt cracks a grin of his own, starting to feel more at ease himself. When Danny springs up to get food, Brian immediately gushes, “Did you see that?! You saw that, right?”

 

“Yes, I saw,” Matt answers, admittedly not being able to help but feel a little jealous. 

 

“I’m never washing my face again,” Brian sighs.

 

Matt squints. “Again?”

 

Brian cackles, retorting, “If I weren’t in such a good mood right now I would kick your ass, Matty.”

 

“Well, thank you for showing mercy,” Matt chuckles. Still, he has that twinge of a burn of envy mulling about in his stomach. He can only hope that when he walks Danny home, he might be as lucky as Brian was. 

  
  
  



	4. Chapter 4

After the final bell rings, Matt is getting his things from his locker when he suddenly feels arms around him. “The fuck?”

 

“Surprise!” Matt immediately recognizes the voice as Danny’s and softens, grabbing onto one of the arms. He spins to face him, ending the hug.

 

“Ready to go?” Matt asks.

 

Danny nods.

 

“Well too bad, because we’re going to wait for Brian’s slow ass for a minute,” Matt says. “Rat bastard has gym eighth period and he likes to wait till all the guys leave to change. What a diva.” He slumps against the lockers until he’s sitting on the floor, patting the spot beside him and peering up at Danny expectantly. 

 

Danny occupies the space, resting his head on Matt’s shoulder without warning. Matt’s caught off guard, and he finds himself blushing as he’s catching the faintest waft of Danny’s shampoo, some generic girly shit. 

 

“How come he didn’t walk with you yesterday?” Danny asks.

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “The dumb whore had detention.”

 

Danny giggles, “I can tell you guys are good friends by the way you talk about each other. What’d he do to get detention?”

 

Matt shrugs. “Knowing Brian, some stupid unnecessary tomfoolery, for sure.”

 

“We really have a test tomorrow, huh?” Danny sighs.

 

Matt nearly chokes on nothing. “I beg your pardon? In history?!”

 

Laughing, Danny insists, “Yeah, we do! Maybe if you didn’t sleep through so much of the lesson you would’ve noticed.”

 

“Aw fuck, I hate history,” Matt whines. “I need to study and I haven’t even started.”

 

“I could study with you if you want,” Danny offers. “I’m like a really good study partner; I’m super organized.” 

 

“Sure,” Matt agrees. “We can study at my house. I’ll drag Brian along too; he won’t want to, but he has to study. That or he’ll be sucking his way to a passing grade.” Matt blinks. “He’d probably like that, actually.”

 

“What’s up nerds?” Brian’s standing above them, gazing down at the pair with a grin. He notices Danny’s head resting comfortably on Matt’s shoulder. Repressing the flames licking at his stomach in response, he jokes, “Oh, am I interrupting something?”

 

“Shut up,” Matt scoffs, pushing himself to his feet. He offers his hands to Danny, who accepts and is pulled up quickly. The trio make their way home, Brian walking alongside the pair in the grass as he refuses to take the third wheel placement behind them on the sidewalk.

 

“We’re going to study for history, by the way,” Matt tells. 

 

“Oh, um, no thank you,” Brian replies.

 

“I wasn’t asking,” Matt says flatly.

 

Brian pouts, whining, “But I don’t want to.”

 

“You know you’ll fail if you don’t,” Danny says.

 

Groaning dramatically, Brian begins, “Yeah, but…” he doesn’t finish that thought, finally sighing as he says, “Fine, you win.”

 

“Oh yeah, hot sidebar,” Matt mentions. “What did your stupid ass do to get detention the other day?”

 

Brian pauses, almost running a mental reel of all of the previous detentions he had received. “What, yesterday?”

 

Matt nods, promoting Brian to flap a hand as he says, “Oh, it was nothing. Some kid decided to get smart and… I lost my temper and hit him. He totally deserved it, though.”

 

Matt’s eyes double in size. “Wait, you  _ hit  _ somebody? But you’re as queen as it gets.”

 

Brian shrugs, admitting, “They really rubbed me the wrong way. I don’t regret it at all.”

 

“Well, what’d they say?” Danny asks.

 

Brian’s voice is low and steady as he admits, “Uh, someone called Matt a fag.” He picks at his fingernails, adding, “It was a bunch of bullshit; I couldn’t let him say that and just get away with it. It wouldn’t be right.”

 

Placing a hand over his chest, Matt mocks a choked up voice, asking, “Oh my god, we’re actually friends? You stood up for me?” 

 

Brian bobs his head, retorting, “Well, duh. Like, you are a fag, don’t get me wrong, but only I can say that. And I’m also a fag, so it’s not homophobic, it’s like, reclaiming or whatever.”

 

Matt grabs Brian by either side of his face and kisses him on the lips. “Thank you for that.”

 

Looking taken aback, Brian jokes, “Um, I didn’t catch that. Kiss me again?”

 

At that, Matt pushes him lightly. “Whore.” The three finally make it to Matt’s doorstep, each abandoning their shoes inside the entryway. “We do Japanese style in this household,” Matt murmurs. He leads the pair to the kitchen, where he immediately scours the premises for snacks. Armed with soda, Cheez-Itz, and Oreos, the group ducks away into Matt’s bedroom, the three boys squishing onto Matt’s twin size mattress. 

 

Opening the textbook, Danny mentions, “We have a study guide so we should probably try and get that done first. There’s three pages so I can do the first page, Matt you do the second, and Brian do the last page.”

 

“Ugh, I love it when you take charge like that,” Brian gushes. “I’m not used to seeing you so dominant.”

 

The innuendo flying over Danny’s head, he merely chirps, “Thanks.”

 

Brian rolls his eyes, nevertheless cracking open his own book and starting on the questions. The trio finish the study guide in a short amount of time, then taking time to go over the answers. The three then quiz each other until they’re all familiar with the material. Some hour and a half later, Matt sighs, “So, I don’t think I will fail. I would hate to jinx it, but I think I might get an A.”

 

“Cs get degrees,” Brian counters. 

 

Suddenly, Matt’s brother is in the doorway, asking, “Hey, mom’s out late so we’re ordering pizza. What kind do you want?”

 

Matt looks at Brian, remembering his friend is vegetarian. “Cheese… yeah. Cheese.”

 

“What are you queers doing?” Jared asks, showing mild interest despite trying to play aloof. 

 

“Studying for a history exam,” Brian says. 

 

“Oh,” Jared replies. As Matt stands up to turn on the stereo, Jared taps him on the crotch. “Are you gonna fail this one, too?”

 

Clutching onto himself in pain, Matt replies, “Don’t think so. I also plan on graduating.”

 

Jared immediately grabs Matt by the neck, forcing his head down as he reaches for the waistband of his pants. He grabs onto Matt’s grey briefs and pulls hard, stretching the underwear halfway up his back before letting him go with a shove. “Faggot.”

 

Matt slams the door behind him, turning to face his two friends.

 

“I’ve never seen you this red,” Brian admits.

 

“Thanks for sticking up for me, guys,” Matt mumbles.

 

“Hey, I have unresolved trauma because of your brother. My ass cheeks still instinctively clench whenever I see him,” Brian says.

 

“What’s his problem?” Danny asks.

 

Tucking his underwear back into his jeans, Matt rolls his eyes as he explains, “He dropped out of high school. Fucking deadbeat.”

 

Nodding, Brian adds, “Kinda crazy to think that you’re the responsible one.”

 

Pulling his weed stash out from his closet, Matt says, “I know.” He withdraws his grinder, pulling out some papers and beginning to roll a joint. “Danny, do you smoke?”

 

“Hell yeah,” Danny replies. “Party.”

 

Licking the joint and then sealing it with a lighter, Matt starts it and takes a long drag. Exhaling as he passes it to Brian, he mutters, “My brother’s a fucking cunt.”

 

Brian takes a hit, slowly letting the smoke pour from his mouth as he agrees, “You know what, you’re right. You’re not obligated to love your family. Your brother is a fucking cunt. And you’re right to say so.” 

 

Danny takes a pull once it’s passed to him, coughing lightly as he tells, “Shit like that is why I’m glad I’m an only child.”

 

“Amen,” Brian mumbles. 

 

After the three smoke and eat, Matt decides to walk Danny home, Brian having headed off in his own path. As they walk down the dark street, Danny murmurs, “Sorry about your brother, by the way. He’s a fucking piece of work.”

 

Matt shrugs. “It’s whatever. I just wish he’d move out.”

 

Sighing as they reach Danny’s house, Danny says, “Well, this is me.” He turns to Matt saying, “Have a good rest of the night.”

 

“Hey, you too,” Matt replies. 

 

Danny looks at him for a moment, those fucking doe eyes running a quick scan of his body as he bites his full lower lip. Standing on his tiptoes, he presses an open-mouthed kiss to Matt’s lips, breaking away after a few moments with a wave as he retreats inside. Once he’s gone, Matt still stands there starstruck for a moment, fingers absently brushing the spot where Danny had been just moments ago.

  
  
  



	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Having two Brians is confusing! So I spelled Brian (Katya) as Bryan for the literal sole purpose of distinguishing the two idiots. That’s all :-)

The next morning on the walk to school, Danny doesn’t meet with Matt and Brian like he usually does. Brian notices immediately, asking, “Hey, where’s chola?”

 

“I don’t know,” Matt admits. He pulls out his phone, texting Danny: you sick or what? Returning his phone to his pocket, he mentions, “Speaking of, I have some crazy news about Danny.”

 

Brian gasps. “Is he straight? If you tell me he’s straight I’m leaving the Catholic Church.”

 

“You  _ burn  _ in the Catholic Church,” Matt retorts, rolling his eyes. “Listen. Danny and I kissed last night after I walked him home.”

 

Brian doesn’t have the ecstatic reaction Matt had hoped for. Instead, he merely narrows his eyes. “What?”

 

“We kissed, Danny and I kissed,” Matt repeats.

 

“No, I heard you. I was just hoping that you were kidding,” Brian grumbles, pushing forward at a quicker pace. 

 

“Hey!” Matt calls, jogging to catch up to him. “What’s your problem?”

 

Brian stops, turning to face Matt. “Really? What’s my problem? Do you hear me when I speak?”

 

“What, you’re mad because you had a crush on him?” Matt asks incredulously. 

 

“Yeah, duh,” Brian snaps. “But I wasn’t going to do anything about it because I knew you liked him, too. I thought you would make the same judgment.”

 

Matt frowns, replying, “Well, we never agreed to that. I just assumed whoever he ended up with, he ended up with. I didn’t know he was off limits; that’s ridiculous.”

 

“Is it?” Brian challenges.

 

“I think you’re just bitter because he kissed me and not you,” Matt accuses. “If we’re being completely honest.”

 

“You know what, you’re an asshole,” Brian curses. “Danny doesn’t know what he’s getting himself into. I’ll tell him all of the embarrassing shit I know about you.”

 

“You wouldn’t fucking dare,” Matt says coldly.

 

Brian cocks his head to the side. “I’ll tell him about that time I scared you in the seventh grade and you pissed your pants.”

 

“I’ll tell him that everyone called you ‘boner’ all freshman year after that locker room incident,” Matt threatens. 

 

“Do it! That way I can tell him about the time you cut your balls while you were shaving and you called me because you thought you were bleeding to death,” Brian replies.

 

“I’ll tell him you still play with dolls.”

 

Brian gasps. “You’re a monster.”

 

“No, you’re a monster, I’m a stud,” Matt shoots back. “You’re just jealous.”

 

“You know what?” Brian says. He turns, shaking his head as he dismisses, “Fuck you, dude.”

 

“Get bent,” Matt replies as Brian saunters off. He groans, checking his phone to see if Danny texted him back with no luck. Frustrated, he lets out a long groan before continuing on his walk to school. 

 

He has to admit, even though he’s still super pissed at Brian, it’s weird not to sit by him in history. He’s doodling to try and take his mind off things when he hears his teacher announce, “We have a new student. Bryan, do you want to introduce yourself?”

 

A scrawny blond boy that happened to have sat next to Bryan stands, offering a wave as he shares, “I’m Bryan. I like blood and Chinese food.”

 

What a weirdo, Matt thinks to himself. His eyes unintentionally shift onto his friend, who meets his gaze for a split second before exaggeratedly rolling his eyes and turning his head back to the front of the room.

 

Matt huffs, returning to his doodling for the rest of the period. His thoughts are still racing; he can’t help but to replay the harsh words the pair had exchanged over and over. He wishes that he hadn’t said anything at all; maybe it would’ve been best to keep the kiss between him and Danny. But in his defense, he was excited, and he genuinely thought that his best friend would be happy for him. Matt sighs. Wishful thinking.

 

At lunch, Matt sits alone, wanting to sink into the floor for doing so. Checking his phone, he sees that Danny has finally texted him back: yeah. Don’t worry though; it probably doesn’t have to do anything with our kiss.

 

Matt smirks, texting back: we’ll have to kiss again, just to be sure. 

 

Matt contemplates whether or not he should tell Danny about the argument he and Brian got into this morning. On one hand, he knows Danny will take his side (and he just really wants to vent to anybody who will listen), but on the other, he wasn’t sure how Danny would take the information that Matt immediately bragged about kissing him to his best friend. He elects not to, his eyes wandering over to his usual lunch table. He notices that the blond boy from his history class is sitting with Brian at the table. He checks his phone again to see Danny’s simple reply: party.

 

The day is long and miserable, and Matt is genuinely caught off guard when he’s at his locker after the last bell and Brian approaches him. He’s on guard, but Brian’s face seems calm and forlorn as he says, “Hey. So… things got kinda out of hand this morning. You need to know that you’re my best friend and I’m happy for you no matter what. I’ll always have your back.”

 

Matt bobs his head, rolling his eyes as he suggests, “Makeup hug?”

 

Brian happily obliges, squeezing Matt tightly and temporarily lifting his shorter friend off of the ground. Setting him back down, Brian whines, “Matt, that was awful. Let’s never fight again.”

 

“No promises,” Matt teases. “For real, it was rough. Not to be gay or anything, but I missed you.”

 

“Gross,” Brian jokes. The two walk in a comfortable silence for some time, happy to be on speaking terms again.

 

“So,” Matt begins. “Who was the hot blond you were sitting with?”

 

“Oh! That’s Bryan from history class. Dude, he’s such a freaking babe and we literally flirted the whole lunch period,” Brian gushes. He leans in, grabbing Matt’s arms dramatically as he shares, “He told me I should see him naked, Matt. Naked! Like, penis! And ass!”

 

Matt cackles, pushing Brian away playfully as he says, “Wow, sounds like he’s almost as much of a horn dog as you are. You guys are made for each other.”

 

“I’m just happy that if we both play our cards right, we’ll be getting dicked down come Thanksgiving,” Brian says.

 

“I never thought I’d say this, but I do hope that you get lucky, Brian. If you don’t come soon, you’re going to sprain something,” Matt jokes.

 

“It’s a matter of health,” Brian tells solemnly.

 

“It’s a matter of health,” Matt repeats.

  
  
  
  



	6. Chapter 6

Danny doesn’t return to school the next day, and the day after that when he finally returns, it’s clear that Matt had missed the boy. He wraps him in a tight hug, murmuring into his shoulder, “I missed you.”

 

Looking surprised, Danny chuckles, agreeing, “I missed you too.” He breaks the hug and hugs Brian as well, asking, “How have you been?”

 

“Fantastic,” Brian gushes. “I met a hot boy with the same name as me and I’m living my best life.”

 

“It’s true. You’ll meet him later, Danny. He’s in our history class and he eats lunch with us,” Matt says.

 

“How was being sick for two days?” Brian questions.

 

Danny groans dramatically. “It was actual hell. I hate being sick. The only good thing about it is that I played all the way through Pokémon Pearl and I watched two seasons of American Horror Story.”

 

“That actually sounds fun,” Brian replies.

 

Danny scoffs. “Not when you’re on the literal brink of death.”

 

“Figurative brink,” Matt corrects. “You’re so dramatic.”

 

“When I’m sick, I have a right to be,” Danny insists. The trio reaches Bryan’s house and stand on the sidewalk outside, waiting. 

 

“I’ll go get the weirdo,” Brian offers, jogging up to the front steps. Knocking on the door, he waits for a few moments before Bryan appears, looking like he woke up mere moments ago. “Good morning.”

 

Eyes squinted against the bright morning sun, Bryan replies, “Mmm, morning.” He steps out and catches up with the rest of the group as they head down their path towards the school. He turns and notices Danny, does a double take, and asks, “Who’s this?”

 

Danny sticks his hand out. “Danny, hi.”

 

Taking his hand, Bryan lifts it to his mouth and places a kiss on the back of it. “Bryan.”

 

Danny turns crimson, making Matt stifle a chuckle. The group walks in comfortable silence for some time before Brian screeches in his characteristically Brian way without a warning.

 

Matt flinches, a hand flying to his chest. “Jesus! What is it?”

 

“It’s Friday!” Brian cheers. “And my parents are out of town so I think a little shindig is due.”

 

“Party!” Danny chirps.

 

“I’ll bring weed,” Matt says.

 

“I’ll bring myself,” Bryan tells.

 

“I have alcohol, so we’re gonna be set. You guys can start showing up around seven or eight; whatever works for you,” Brian informs.

 

“I haven’t gotten drunk in forever,” Matt sighs. He smiles broadly. “This should be fun.”

 

When they file into the history classroom, Brian and Bryan sit side by side with Danny and Matt sitting in front of them. The period is as boring with any other with that teacher, and Matt is eager to rush out once the bell rings. 

 

Danny rushes to catch up with Matt, saying, “Hey! Can I talk to you about something?”

 

Matt gives him a reassuring look, telling, “Of course, you can talk to me about anything.”

 

“So like…” Danny rolls his eyes as he shrugs, confessing, “I’ve never drank before. But I’m willing to try. So it’d mean a lot if you could help like, pace me and keep an eye on me to make sure I don’t do anything stupid.”

 

Matt nods. “Yeah no problem.”

 

Danny beams. “Thanks cutie.” He pecks Matt, waving over his shoulder as he heads off in his own direction. 

 

That short kiss leaves Matt grinning like a big idiot for the remainder of the morning. He can’t wait till lunch to see his friends again. Sitting at the familiar table, he asks, “When are we going to get our fucking test scores back?”

 

“Probably on Monday to make that shit day even worse,” Brian complains. “Mark my words.”

 

“I hate when you’re right,” Matt mumbles. 

 

“I’m excited for tonight,” Danny says. “I’ve never drank before, so I’m super stoked.”

 

Bryan’s jaw all but hits the floor. “You’ve  _ never  _ drank?” When Danny shakes his head, Bryan makes an exaggerated choking sound. “You’re so brave for living on this planet without being under the influence.”

 

“I mean, I smoke weed, so I’m familiar with being under the influence of that,” Danny says.

 

“Ooh, alcohol is different though,” Brian tells. “It’s kind of a party, but at a certain point you get to where you don’t understand what’s going on. But that’s fun, too.”

 

“I just better not do anything stupid,” Danny says. 

 

“I mean, you kissed Matt, so… too late,” Brian retorts.

 

Danny’s brow furrows as he looks over to Matt in confusion. Brian grimaces as he realizes that Matt hadn’t told Danny that he shared that information. He wants to either turn back time or throw himself into a volcano. Better yet, he could do both for good measure.

 

“You told him?”

 

Matt is sweating bullets within seconds. “Um, well yeah it was good news, so… I couldn’t wait to share it.”

 

While Brian has his face buried in his hands, Bryan is on the edge of the seat with his eyebrows raised, anticipating Danny’s next move.

 

Only, he merely shrugs, allowing, “Alright.”

 

Matt lets out a sigh of relief as Bryan groans exasperatedly. Matt laughs, demanding, “What, you wanted us to fight?”

 

“I’m just hungry for drama,” Bryan admits. “For a school with so many fucking bodies in it, jackshit goes down.”

 

“I’m sure stuff happens,” Brian says. “We’re just not in the loop; no one talks to us.”

 

Matt bursts into laughter, nodding vehemently. “It’s bad because it’s true.”

 

“I think I talked to Jason once and he told me not to talk to him anymore,” Brian recalls. 

 

“Well, Jason’s a straight up cunt,” Matt reminds.

 

“Who’s Jason?” Danny asks.

 

“Pale faggot with long dark hair,” Brian explains. “I had gym class with him last semester. It’s such a shame; he’s super hot but he’s also a snob.”

 

“Honestly,” Bryan weighs in. “The fact that he’s such a babe while being a Gila monster is homophobic.”

 

The group dissolves into laughter, Matt clapping his hands as he leans back in his seat. 

 

“Homophobia ended when Green Day recorded ‘Coming Clean!’” Danny insists. “Know your herstory.”

 

Matt reaches under the table, wrapping his hand around Danny’s thigh and giving a playful squeeze. Danny jumps slightly and his hazel eyes shift over to meet Matt’s gaze. He gives a crooked smile before returning to the conversation. 

  
  



	7. Chapter 7

The afternoon rushes by, and before Matt knows it, he’s buzzed at Brian’s house with Danny. He’s standing in Brian’s family den, a plastic cup half full of beer in his hand. Danny is in the bathroom, and Matt is still gazing absently at the door when Brian walks up beside him.

 

“Dude you’re lucky; Danny is so cool,” Brian gushes.

 

“Well yeah, but what do you mean?” Matt asks.

 

Brian leans in, telling, “Not only does he smoke with you, but he’s literally never drank before and he’s totally down. You’ll never get bored with him.” Brian takes a sip of his beer, then adding thoughtfully, “He’s probably a straight up freak in the bedroom.”

 

Matt smacks him, not being able to help but chuckle as he says, “That’s my boyfriend, you asshole.” He takes a drink, telling, “Speaking of, you should see when your blond menace will be here.”

 

“There’s an idea,” Brian says. Withdrawing his phone from his pocket, he selects his boyfriend’s contacts and calls, putting the phone on speaker. 

 

“Are you hard?” Bryan asks as he picks up. 

 

Cackling, Brian replies, “I can’t answer that; you’re on speaker.”

 

“Ooh! I feel so exposed,” Bryan teases. “So what’s up buttercup?”

 

“Just checking to see when you’re going to be over,” Brian says.

 

“You actually caught me on my way out the door,” Bryan chirps. “Ooh! But you have to promise me once I’m there we’ll play truth or dare.”

 

Rolling his eyes (Brian’s lucky he’s on the phone; he would never try that in front of his boyfriend), Brian agrees, “Okay, fine. Get your little, bony ass over here.”

 

“I’m on my way. Bye, sweetie. I love you.” 

 

Brian smiles. “I love you, too.”

 

“Wow,” Matt says once Brian hangs up. “You guys are already at ‘I love you?’ That’s a big step.”

 

Shrugging, Brian admits, “Yeah, I try not to think about it too much. Otherwise, I’ll freak out like I usually do and fuck things up.”

 

“At least you’re self-aware.”

 

Brian rolls his eyes back into his skull before downing the rest of his drink. Returning to the fridge, he asks, “Need another?”

 

Taking his last few swallows, Matt nods, catching the beer that is lobbed to him. Danny renters from the bathroom, clapping for a beer and fumbling it. He picks it up off the ground, grinning sheepishly as he taps at the top of it.

 

“Bryan’s on his way,” Matt says.

 

Danny’s eyes drift to Brian and Matt can practically see the hamster wheel spinning in his head before he finally concludes, “Oh, other Bryan.”

 

“Yes,” Brian says. Sitting on the couch, he shares, “We’re going to play truth or dare.”

 

Flinging himself onto the loveseat, Danny replies, “Party. Sounds fun.”

 

Matt sits next to him, wrapping an arm around his waist as he says, “With your boyfriend, Brian, I’m sure it’ll be interesting.”

 

Not two moments later, there’s a knock at the door followed by a gruff voice calling, “BCPD, open up.”

 

Although Danny visibly tenses, Brian merely stands, opening the door as he chides, “I wasn’t born yesterday.” 

 

Bryan is still pulled into a hug, humming as the taller boy plants a kiss on top of his head. Holding his hand, he leads him back over to the couch where the two sit, grabbing him a beer on the way.

 

Cracking open his drink, Bryan takes a slurp before asking, “Who’s going first, bitches?”

 

When the three others all look blankly at each other, Brian interjects, “I’m thinking of a number between one and one hundred.”

 

“Why do you get to pick the number?” Matt scoffs.

 

With a shit-eating grin, Brian replies earnestly, “Because I don’t want to go first.”

 

“Seven,” Bryan guesses.

 

“Eighty-five,” Danny says.

 

“Fifty,” Matt tells.

 

“Ah! It was sixty-nine! Which means…” Brian trails off.

 

“I was closest. Jesus Christ, you have the math skills of a kindergartner,” Matt jokes.

 

“So you go first,” Brian says.

 

Matt pauses for a moment, then turning to his boyfriend. “Danny, truth or dare?”

 

“Truth,” Danny says, eliciting a lengthy groan from Bryan.

 

“Who was your gay awakening?” Matt asks.

 

“What, like the first guy I had a crush on?” Danny questions. When Matt nods, he bites his lip, then sharing, “Well, my best friend back in Azusa had this really cute older brother. And we would all wrestle and when he would pin me down, I always wanted him to just like leave me there.” Rolling his eyes at his friends reactions, Danny asks, “Brian, truth or dare?”

 

“Truth,” Brian answers.

 

“Pussy!” Matt coughs. 

 

Brian glares at him as Danny asks, “Have you ever kissed a girl?”

 

Brian scoffs. “Ew, no. What’s a girl?”

 

“Objection!” Matt yells. “You don’t know Brian well enough to ask the right questions.”

 

“Then you do one,” Danny retorts.

 

Matt thinks for a moment, then grinning mischievously as he tells, “Brian, tell us all of your kinks.”

 

Brian immediately shrieks, “You stupid twink! I hate you!” He takes a long drink of his beer, then beginning, “Biting, scratching, bondage, spanking, and… piss.” As his friends jeer, Brian insists, “No kink shaming! It’s 2019, guys, grow up.”

 

Bryan’s merely gazing at his boyfriend, blue eyes huge. “Wow, you’re going to be a lot of fun in the bedroom.”

 

Everyone erupts into laughter until Brian composes himself enough to ask, “Truth or dare, baby.”

 

“Dare. I’m feeling very spicy,” Bryan replies.

 

“Strip to your undies,” Brian says. “Now.”

 

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” Bryan chirps, shirt already halfway off. He tosses his shirt to the side and unbuckles his khakis, pulling them down to his ankles and struggling to get them over his sneakers. He simply leaves them there, sitting in his black boxer briefs completely unfazed.

 

“Nice,” Brian murmurs.

 

“Matt, truth or dare?” Bryan asks.

 

“Truth,” Matt says.

 

“Alright, who wears the pants in your relationship?” Bryan questions.

 

Matt looks to Danny and the two start to laugh. “That’s an easy one,” Matt says. Danny bobs his head in agreement. “Me.”

 

“I do,” Danny chimes in the same breath. His head flicks over to Matt as he repeats, “I do.”

 

“Um, no, me,” Matt retorts.

 

“In what world?” Danny asks sarcastically. 

 

“This one,” Matt retorts.

 

Brian gasps, whispering to his boyfriend, “You’ve caused a rift.”

 

“It was not my intention to cause a rift,” Bryan whispers back. 

 

There’s some heated awkward silence, with Matt and Danny both glaring at each other wordlessly.

 

Laughing nervously, Bryan announces, “I’m so cold that my nipple could take someone’s eye out. I’m going to get dressed.”

 

Kissing him, Brian suggests, “Or, you could go make yourself comfortable in my bed. I’ll join you in a minute, babe.”

 

Bryan stands, nearly tripping as he exits to disappear into his boyfriend’s bedroom. “Night, guys. Please don’t commit a crime of passion.”

 

Brian grabs onto Matt’s arm to get his attention, asking, “Are you good to drive home, dude?”

 

Matt nods, telling, “Yeah, I only had two.” He and Danny stand simultaneously. “Have a good night, Brian. I hope you get some dick.”

 

As Danny begins to walk towards the door, Matt leans to Brian, whispering, “God knows I won’t.”

 

“I heard that,” Danny replies flatly.

 

Matt winces, waving over his shoulder at Brian before heading outside with his boyfriend.

 

On the ride home they sit in icy silence. Matt turns up the radio once he recognizes the Smashing Pumpkins song playing.

 

“Turn that down; it’s too loud,” Danny complains.

 

Matt’s eyes shift over to him blankly as he turns up the volume. When he parks the car, he asks, “You still sleeping here, or what?”

 

“I mean, you already drove us here,” Danny answers. The two get out, and once safely inside Matt’s bedroom they stand stiffly, both gazing at the other for a brief moment before ramming their lips into each other.

 

Their hands are grasping and frantic over each other’s bodies, Matt running his hands up the front of Danny’s shirt to play with his nipples. The two end up against a wall, Matt towering over the shorter boy as he bites at his neck.

 

“Ow,” Danny mutters.

 

“Sorry,” Matt replies.

 

“No, it’s good,” Danny encourages. He palms the front of Matt’s jeans, and Matt can feel his knees weaken. The two shift over to the bed, Danny throwing Matt down onto the mattress. Matt grabs Danny by the front of the shirt to pull him close, tugging at his lower lip as he breaks the kiss. Danny quickly pulls off his shirt followed by Matt’s, tossing both articles of clothing haphazardly across the room. He then places biting kisses down Matt’s chest and stomach, eliciting moans from the other teen. Undoing Matt’s pants, he pulls them to his knees, followed by his red briefs. First licking a broad stripe along the head of his cock, Danny then coaxes his mouth further down the shaft, wide eyes glancing up at Matt as he does so. His other hand ends up on Matt’s upper thigh, squeezing the soft skin.

 

Matt threads some fingers through Danny’s hair, eyes screwed shut as his head falls back in pleasure. “Ahh, fuck. Fuck, babe.”

 

Danny quickens his pace, his hand that was gripping Matt’s thigh sliding up his hip, caressing his waist fondly. He deep throats his length, his hand finally reaching Matt’s nipple and teasing him.

 

Matt’s hips give a couple of involuntary small jerks forward as he mumbles, “Ah, I’m gonna come.”

 

Danny merely maintains his pace, swallowing as Matt orgasms and bringing him back to earth slowly. Wiping his lips, he crawls up towards his boyfriend, kissing him before lying next to him, forcing Matt’s arms around him so he can be the little spoon.

 

The two lie there in silence for a few moments, Danny slipping out of his pants and sighing contently. Finally, he admits, “We should hatefuck more often.”

 

Matt can feel himself stiffen just the slightest bit as he agrees, “For sure.”

 


	8. Chapter 8

Matt wakes up the next morning having dodged a hangover with massive morning wood. Palming himself, he turns his head to see if Danny is awake yet, only to see the boy is still passed out. He considers waking him for a moment before deciding against it, getting up to use the restroom and taking his phone with him. 

 

After, he heads to the living room, relieved to see that his brother hasn’t woken up yet. He sits back on the couch, sighing as he calls Brian.

 

“Good morning,” Matt greets once Brian answers. 

 

“More like  _ great  _ morning,” Brian replies.

 

Laughing, Matt tells, “So, I’m guessing you got some last night?”

 

“And gave some,” Brian says. “How about you dude? I thought you and Danny were on the brink of either throwing punches or fucking each other senselessly.”

 

Matt blushes a bit, explaining, “I mean, I got some good head last night.”

 

Brian gasps loudly. “And you didn’t return the favor?”

 

“Well I,” Matt trails off for a moment, then asking, “Can I talk to you about something? It’s embarrassing.”

 

“Matt I’m your best friend,” Brian retorts. “Just tell me.”

 

“Okay so the reason I haven’t gone down on him yet is because… I have a really bad gag reflex,” Matt confesses. “I think god wanted me to be straight or some shit.”

 

“Oh honey, there’s numbing sprays for that,” Brian assures.

 

“What?”

 

“So you spray it in your mouth and it will help with your reflex by numbing your throat,” Brian explains. “This is so fun; I feel like a gay fairy godmother.”

 

“Shit, I’ll have to get some,” Matt mumbles.

 

“I got you covered,” Brian says. “In fact, I’ll drop it off right now. I was just dropping my boy off.”

 

Matt nods. “Thanks man. Wait, you keep the spray in your car?”

 

“You ask too many questions!” Brian snaps before hanging up. Matt chuckles, slipping into some sandals and heading outside to wait for his delivery.

 

Brian pulls up in his little blue car, the brakes screeching as he abruptly stops after a hearty curb check. He rolls down his window and waves, “Jolene” blaring over the speakers. 

 

“How do you even have a license?” Matt demands.

 

Handing the spray over, Brian replies, “A mistake at the DMV which will undoubtedly end horribly wrong.” Once Matt takes the small bottle from him, Brian peels off without a warning, calling out the window, “I’m a danger to society!”

 

Matt erupts into laughter, slipping the spray into his pocket as he walks back inside. He immediately tries the spray, then testing it in the bathroom with his toothbrush. To his surprise, I really does work, enabling him to shove most of his toothbrush down his throat without gagging. After he sets the toothbrush back in its place, he decides that it’s time for Danny to wake up. 

 

Stripping to his underwear, Matt crawls under the blankets at the foot of the bed and creeps forward towards Danny’s sleeping figure. He places a few gentle kisses against Danny’s inner upper thighs, then stroking him through the thin fabric of his briefs as he sucks on his stomach.

 

Danny slowly stirs awake, his firming cock preceding his awakening by just a few seconds. “Mmm.”

 

Matt breaks the kiss, poking his head out from the covers. “Good morning, beautiful.” The two share a kiss, Danny cupping one side of Matt’s face. 

 

“Good morning, handsome,” Danny replies warmly. He kisses Matt once more before Matt sinks back underneath the covers, planting a harsh kiss on Danny’s inner upper thigh. His hand works relentlessly against the lap of his underwear, eliciting tiny moans from Danny as his toes curl.

 

Matt finally slips two fingers underneath the waistband of Danny’s white briefs, pulling the clothing off as Danny lifts his hips to help. Tossing the garment to the side, Matt places a teasing kiss just above Danny’s cock before finally licking the head.

 

One hand wraps itself around the shaft as Matt laps broad strokes against the underside of the head. He then eases down the shaft, coaxing his lips up and down. One of his hands wanders underneath Danny’s ass, squeezing tightly onto one cheek, while the other is clutching onto his hip like it’s all he has. As Matt deepthroats the length for the first time, he can feel Danny’s hips stutter as he whimpers, “Babe, ahhh, fuck.”

 

Matt can’t help but smile as he continues his work, reducing Danny to a twitching, whining puddle in moments. Danny is hardly able to mumble, “Matt, I’m close.”

 

Matt shows no mercy, deepthroating Danny and squeezing his ass simultaneously. That’s enough to push Danny over the edge. The teen whines before letting out a slew of profanities as he comes. Matt swallows without a complaint, wiping his mouth of his forearm before he appears from underneath the covers, kissing Danny and then grinning as he pulls the teen’s arms around him. Since Danny was the little spoon last night, Matt figured it was only fair that he be the little spoon this time. 

 

“How was it?” Matt asks, unable to help but ask for his shining review. 

 

Danny bobs his head, seemingly at a loss for words. “Let’s just say that I wish I could wake up to that every morning.”

 

“You would if I had my way,” Matt purrs, then turning to kiss his boyfriend once more. The two cuddle for about half an hour before Matt offers, “I can drive you home.”

 

“Sounds good,” Danny agrees. He kisses Matt before getting out of bed, a single hand cupped over himself for privacy as he snatches his underwear from the floor.

 

“Your pubes are so much darker than mine,” Matt says out of nowhere.

 

Danny giggles. “That’s because I’m a chola.” Once he’s dressed, he grabs Matt’s hand, leading his boyfriend out to the car.

 

When Matt pulls up into Danny’s driveway the two share a long, gentle kiss. After it ends, they’re left just inches apart, smiling at each other contently. Matt brushes some of Danny’s dark bangs off of his forehead, telling, “Hopefully I’ll get to see you later today and we can smoke. I had a lot of fun.”

 

“I did too,” Danny replies. He looks at Matt with that lopsided grin that just kills him, then opening the car door and stepping out onto the lawn. Matt watches his ass shamelessly as his boyfriend retreats into his house, waving over his shoulder at Matt and blowing a kiss before going inside. 

  
  
  
  
  



	9. Chapter 9

Later that afternoon, Matt is sitting in bed smoking a blunt,  _ America’s Next Top Model  _ playing on his TV. Suddenly, there’s a loud knock on the door. Springing up from his bed immediately, Matt rushes to the window, opening it and preparing to toss the blunt if needed.

 

“Chill out, it’s just me,” Jared’s voice says from the other side.

 

“It’s unlocked,” Matt calls. Taking a long pull as his brother steps in, Matt lets the smoke trail out of his mouth before he asks, “What’s up?” 

 

“Can I bum some weed off you?” he asks. “My guy is out till like Wednesday.”

 

Matt narrows his eyes, flicking the ash from the remnants of the now short blunt. Taking a final drag, he stubs it out on the window sill, telling, “No way.”

 

“Are you kidding me?” Jared scoffs.

 

“No,” Matt retorts. “It’s mine.”

 

Jared shoves Matt, who pushes hard against his brother’s chest in retaliation. Jared grabs one of Matt’s arms, twisting it in the wrong direction.

 

“Ow!” Matt yelps. “Stop it!”

 

Jared just pushes harder as Matt cries out in pain. Tears in his eyes, Matt yells, “Mom!”

 

His mom barges in not a moment later, shouting, “Jared, get off of him! Go to your room. Matt, you stay in your room for the rest of the night, too.”

 

Jared storms off to his bedroom as Matt protests, “But he started it!”

 

“I don’t care who started it,” his mother snaps. “I’m ending it.” She slams his door just as Matt flings himself onto his bed, screaming into his pillow with exasperation. 

 

His phone vibrates and he picks it up to see that Danny’s calling him. He sniffles before accepting the call. “Hi sweetie.”

 

“Hey!” Danny chirps. “Are we still down to hang out?” 

 

Matt shakes his head. “No, I fucking wish. I’m in hot water with my mom right now.”

 

“But you want to hang out?” Danny asks. “You would like it if I came over.”

 

Sitting up in his bed, Matt answers, “Yeah, of course.”

 

“Give me five minutes, then,” Danny says, then abruptly ending the call. Confused, Matt stays put for a moment before returning to forming another blunt. He’s just sealing his work as he hears a knock from his window. 

 

Rising and going to the window, Matt can’t help but to laugh as he sees Danny crouched alongside his mother’s rose bush. Matt motions for his boyfriend to come in. Danny immediately obliges, swinging one gangly leg over the window pane before hoisting himself through the space. He kisses Matt, then telling against his lips, “I have a surprise for you, babe.” With that, he pulls his hand from behind his back, revealing the four roses he had obviously plucked from the small garden.

 

“Aw, that’s so sweet,” Matt thanks. He accepts the bundle of flowers, kissing Matt softly before setting them aside on his dresser. Holding Danny’s hand, the two curl up on his bed. Producing the blunt he had rolled, Matt says, “I hope you’re still down to smoke.”

 

“Uh, always,” Danny replies, accepting the extended blunt. He gets it lit before taking two drags, spewing the smoke out in a fine tunnel as he passes it to Matt. 

 

Matt takes two pulls, then grabbing Danny by the collar of his shirt and kissing him. As he kisses him, he lets the smoke pass from his mouth to Danny’s with a smirk. Danny breaks away and grins as he exhales the smoke.

 

Danny settles back against the headboard with Matt, both boys abandoning their shirts as they sit watching cycle 7, a dwindling blunt transferring back and forth. Matt’s arm is wrapped snugly around Danny’s waist, and Danny’s head finds its favorite place against Matt’s shoulder. After Matt takes the final pull, he stamps out the flame against his nightstand. He kisses Danny, and when Danny’s hand moves to undo Matt’s belt, Matt says, “We can’t. My mom’s home.”

 

Danny pauses, then shrugging as he replies, “Then I guess you just have to be quiet.” He proceeds to unbuckle his belt, then undoing his button and coaxing down his zipper. Matt bites at his lower lip as Danny cups him, one thumb tracing against Matt’s upper thigh. Danny starts to suck on Matt’s neck, his hand still relentlessly working the lap of Matt’s briefs. Danny’s mouth trails down Matt’s chest, his tongue landing on his nipple and making fat strokes against the sensitive skin. His lips withdraw as he blows cool air onto the skin and peeks up at his boyfriend.

 

Under his breath, Matt’s voice trembles as he whispers, “Fuck, Danny.”

 

Danny grins, kisses grower gentler and gentler as Danny nears the waistband of his underwear. Danny places strategic, nibbling kisses across both inner thighs, alternating every few kisses. As he plants a more biting kiss against the plush skin of Matt’s right thigh, he brings a hand to either side of Matt’s underwear and eases them down his legs. Matt angles himself so the underwear can be completely removed, leaving Danny to drop them to the floor. Starting with a fleeting, wet kiss wrapped hotly around the head of Matt’s cock, he then begins to swirl his tongue around the head, one hand pressed against Matt’s pelvis and the other kneading into his thigh. Glancing up at his boyfriend, he can see the strain in Matt’s face as he tries to keep his moans as quiet as possible. 

 

Danny brings his tongue along the entire underside of the shaft, eliciting an appreciative shiver from Matt as he continues to struggle not to make substantial noise. Danny deepthroats him once, twice, then hums as he pulls his lips tightly around the head.

 

Matt comes without warning, fingers knotted tightly in Danny’s hair as he whines, “Fuck.” His head drops in exhaustion, prompting Danny to lift Matt’s jaw with his hand to plant a kiss on his lips.

 

They lie in bed after, bodies naked and molded to each other lovingly. Matt says, unprovoked and earnestly, “I’m really glad you came over.”

 

Danny turns to look at him, a crooked smile breaking across his face as he replies, “Me too.”

  
  
  
  
  



	10. Chapter 10

Matt is sitting in his home room at the end of the day that Monday, doodling aimlessly as he counts down the minutes until the bell rings. He feels his phone vibrate in his pocket and withdrawing it, he sees that he’s received a text from Danny. It reads: went outside for a cigarette. Meet me behind school to walk home :). Matt makes a mental note of this, springing up as soon as the bell rings and heading out into the hallway. Soon accompanied by Brian and Bryan, Matt heads out to the back of the building like Danny had instructed. As the group comes closer, Matt can see that Danny is being pinned against the wall by a couple of teens, a third testing how far Danny’s striped briefs will stretch. The waistband nearing Danny’s shoulders, the boy is helpless as he’s overpowered by the stronger teens. Matt rushes over, immediately brandishing his taser as he lights it up. “Get the fuck off of him!”

 

The teens sprint off, a couple of them calling, “Bye, tranny!” as they retreat. Matt chases them for a few moments before giving up. He turns and hurries back to Danny, his hand grasping Danny’s arm as he asks, “Are you okay?”

 

Both of his hands clasped protectively over his ass, Danny whines, “It hurts to walk.”

 

“Yeah, they got you good,” Matt says.

 

Stuffing his underwear back into his pants, Danny scoffs, “Yeah, you could say that.” He joins his friends on their usual walk home, grateful that they immediately switch subjects.

 

“How did everyone do on the history test?” Brian asks.

 

“86,” Danny answers.

 

“74,” Brian replies.

 

“92,” Matt says.

 

“Ooh! I didn’t know I was dating a  _ genius _ !” Danny teases, looping both of his arms around his boyfriend affectionately. 

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “Yeah, right.”

 

“Hey Danny, can I bum a cigarette?” Bryan asks.

 

Bobbing his head, Danny replies, “Sure, man.” Retrieving the pack from his back pocket, he passes one to the teen, then lighting it for him as he takes a long drag.

 

“I didn’t know you smoke,” Brian says.

 

Blowing the smoke out in a thin line, Bryan smiles sweetly. “You don’t know a lot of things about me.” Taking another long inhale, he shrugs as he confesses, “I’m practically made of cigarettes at this point. I’m sure my DNA breaks down to be about 6% nicotine.”

 

“Live fast, die young,” Danny says, pounding his knuckles against Bryan’s before putting a second cigarette between his lips. He lights it, careful to blow the smoke up into the air as opposed to in his boyfriend’s face.

 

“Keep smoking and you will die young,” Matt says. 

 

Danny merely rolls his eyes, taking a longer drag this time almost to spite him. Once they arrive at Matt’s house he stubs it out against the pavement. The two say goodbye to Brian and Bryan, waving as the boy’s head off towards Brian’s house. 

 

The pair stand there on the sidewalk for a moment, Danny staring down absently at the crushed cigarette butt peeking out from underneath the toe of his sneaker. Matt sighs, then telling, “Race you to my room.” With that, he takes off, Danny scrambling to chase after him. 

 

Running into his room and flinging himself onto his bed, Matt cheers, “Aha! I won!”

 

Blowing his bangs out of his face exasperatedly, Danny can’t help but to grin. “You are eight.”

 

Draping one arm over his neck as he pulls him by the front of his shirt, Matt replies teasingly, “Eight inches, maybe.” The two exchange a kiss, Danny wrapping himself in Matt’s arms contently. 

 

“Do you want to get high?” Danny asks.

 

Matt laughs. “You don’t have to ask twice.” He gets up, retrieving his supplies from its space in his closet. He starts rolling two blunts, one for each of them. He nods towards the remote, telling Danny, “Pick something to watch.”

 

Danny opens YouTube and starts an episode of Buzzfeed Unsolved, his hazel eyes peering over to watch Matt at work. “You should teach me how to roll sometime.”

 

Bringing his tongue up the length of one of the blunts, Matt agrees, “Hell yeah.” Licking the other, he shares, “Fun fact: if you don’t want to seal your blunt with a lighter, you can microwave it for like five seconds.”

 

“Ooh, the future is now,” Danny replies in awe.

 

Matt shakes his head, giggling, “You’re so stupid.” He hands Danny one of the blunts, placing his own between his lips and lighting it.

 

Later that night, when both of the teens are high and contently making out, the weather takes a turn for the worse. Lightning flashes begin to flood the room with intermittent light, thunder roaring loudly. Matt’s muscles tense and his eyes are wide. 

 

“Is something wrong?” Danny asks, feeling Matt stiffen beneath his hands.

 

Shaking his head, vehemently, Matt insists, “No, it’s fine.” At that moment, a particularly loud clap of thunder sounds just outside of Matt’s window, making him yelp. He burrows himself underneath the covers, no longer caring how silly he may look.

 

Danny stares at the lump in the covers that Matt is cowering under, his eyes then drifting to the window. “Oh, you’re afraid of storms.” He dives underneath the blankets, wrapping his arms around Matt. “It’s okay.” He kisses his cheek, one of his hands trailing up the back of Matt’s shirt to rub his back. 

 

“I didn’t really want you to find out,” Matt admits. “It’s embarrassing.”

 

“Not really,” Danny replies. “We’re all afraid of something.” He sits there for some time, just reassuring his boyfriend as the storm passes through. He checks his phone, sharing, “Good news, babe. The storm is on its way out. Skies should clear up in about fifteen minutes here.”

 

“That is nice to hear,” Matt murmurs. Danny is pushing some of Matt’s curls behind his ears when Matt says warmly, “I love you, Danny.”

 

Danny smiles so hard that he thinks his skin might crack. “I love you, too.”


	11. Chapter 11

On the walk home from school the next day, Matt offers, “Who wants to smoke weed and play Mario Kart?”

 

“I’m game!” Brian chirps. “Just a warning, I’m pretty bomb at Mario Kart. So nobody get upset if I spread your cheeks cup after cup.”

 

Danny bursts into laughter. “Excuse me?!”

 

“You’ve never heard that before?” Brian asks. “It’s a very common expression.”

 

Matt shakes his head. “I think Brian makes up his own expressions and mistakes them as something everyone says.”

 

Brian rolls his eyes dramatically. “Yeah, right.”

 

When they reach the house, Matt rifles through his brother’s room, swiping his pipe and loading the bowl. Brian eyes the piece, asking, “Isn’t that Jared’s?”

 

“Yeah,” Matt replies. Once the bowl is full, he takes a long hit, passing it to Bryan and showing him to cover the carb with his thumb.

 

“He’s gonna kill you,” Brian warns. He accepts the pipe from Bryan, taking a few pulls before passing it on to Danny.

 

Matt shrugs. “He’s not home. I’ll put it back before he gets here and he’ll never know.”

 

The boys smoke a few more bowls until all of their eyes are red and swollen. Matt has music playing through the speaker and they’re starting up the game. Suddenly, Jared is storming through the door, and it’s just then that Matt realizes he never put his brother’s pipe back. 

 

Immediately, Jared curses, “What are you doing with my pipe, fag face?”

 

“Fuck off, I was just borrowing it,” Matt retorts, standing. Jared rushes at Matt, gripping his hand tightly around the nape of his neck and pressing hard, making Matt whine as his knees buckle in pain. Jared forces Matt’s head down, ramming a hand towards his waistband and pulling harshly on his white briefs. Matt cries out to no avail; Jared continuing to yank on his underwear until they tear. Jared shoves Matt away, pulling his hair before grabbing his pipe and storming off to his room.

 

Matt’s face scarlet, he pushes his underwear back into his pants, whining under his breath. “Thanks for the help, guys.”

 

“Your brother scares me,” Danny admits. “And he looks a lot like you, so I kind of get a fear boner when he’s around.” All of the boys’ eyes immediately shoot to Danny’s lap, making him chuckle and place a hand over himself.

 

Matt sits next to Danny, kissing him before picking up his controller. The four pick their characters before starting the races. As they play, trash talking is abundant. At one point, Brian leans over to block Matt’s field of vision, making Matt twist his friend’s nipple through his shirt in retaliation. Nevertheless, Brian ends up winning, and he wastes no time reminding everyone of that fact.

 

“Yeah that’s what I  _ thought _ !” he cheers. “Want to play again? Who wants to get bent over one more time?”

 

“I want to play again just so I can beat your fat, smug ass,” Bryan retorts.

 

“Is that a fat joke?” Brian demands, mocking an offended gasp.

 

“You are not fat. Your  _ ass  _ is fat, and I love it,” Bryan assures. He kisses his boyfriend once, then breaking away to tell, “Now let’s choose the cup so I can reduce you to tears.”

 

Again, Brian wins. He sets his controller down, taking a victory lap around the room triumphantly. “I spread all of your cheeks! Consider every cheek but mine spread!”

 

“Until I met you, I’ve never heard of a sore winner,” Danny says, ditching his controller. 

 

Brian takes a few more moments to bask in his own glory before announcing, “I’m gonna head out, Matty boy. See you tomorrow morning.”

 

“See you tomorrow morning, dude,” Matt calls with a wave. He watches Brian leave with his boyfriend in tow. He then turns to Danny, asking, “Wanna go to my room?”

 

Danny presses a longing kiss against Matt’s lips, his hand palming the front of Matt’s jeans. Matt bites back a whimper, his hands wandering up the front of Danny’s shirt to play with his nipples. He breaks the kiss to suck on his neck, then finally stopping to say, “Let’s take this to the bedroom.”

The two teens mouths are indistinguishable from each other as Danny continues to fondle Matt through his pants. Matt’s hands travel from Danny’s nipples to land on his ass, kneading the plump skin. Danny begins pushing Matt’s pants down his legs, his hand slipping up the leg of his briefs and wrapping around his cock. Matt sighs at the contact, one of his hands abandoning Danny’s ass to paw at the lap of his pants. Matt sucks a dark hickey onto Danny’s neck, then asking, “Hey, babe? Can I ask you something?”

 

Moaning as Matt’s hand disappears underneath the front waistband of Danny’s pants, Danny nods. “What is it?”

 

“Do you want to try to have sex? Like all the way?” Matt asks.

 

Danny thinks for a moment, chewing on his bottom lip. Finally, he bobs his head. “Yeah. Let’s do it.” He kisses Matt, his hand still working furiously underneath his briefs. 

 

“I can bottom,” Matt says. He bites at Danny’s collarbone, then breaking away for a moment to retrieve lube and a condom from his nightstand. He kisses Danny again, Danny’s hands moving to remove Matt’s underwear as well. He helps his boyfriend slide out of the clothing, tossing them to the side as he brings his lips to the head of his cock. He teases him, his tongue dragging across the underside of the head before he pulls his lips tightly around the cock, humming. Matt coaxes down Danny’s pants, then removing his blue briefs. He strokes him a few times as Danny lives up a few of his fingers. He grabs Matt’s thighs, pulling them to either side of his waist. He kisses Matt, his teeth tugging at his lower lip. “Are you ready?” When Matt nods, Danny traces his finger around his entrance teasingly, then slowly pressing in. Matt moans softly, pushing his hips towards Danny to get more. Danny takes that as a signal to add a second finger, kissing Matt. Matt’s head falls back in pleasure and Danny takes advantage, sucking on his neck as his free hand drifts to his cock. 

 

“You’re so hot,” Danny says. He kisses Matt’s chest, lapping against his nipple a few times. He adds a third finger, spreading his fingers and easing them forward and backward as Matt moans lowly. He withdraws his fingers, taking the condom and ripping the wrapper open. He rolls it on, then bringing lube along his length. He adds a dollop of lube to his fingertips, rubbing it against Matt’s entrance. He kisses Matt as he presses his tip in, his eyes flicking to Matt’s as he asks, “Doing okay?”

 

Matt nods, adding with a chuckle, “Better than okay.”

 

Danny kisses Matt as he eases further in, twirling his hips as his hand works Matt’s cock rapidly. He eventually is in all the way, and he begins to rock as he pushes in and out, his moans mirroring Matt’s. The two go on like this for a few minutes until Danny murmurs, “I’m really close.”

 

One of Matt’s thumbs drags over Danny’s nipple as he kisses him, and that’s enough to send him over the edge. Cursing under his breath, he comes, Matt finishing soon after as Danny strokes him. After, Danny collapses next to Matt, panting slightly. He squeezes Matt’s hand, grinning at him widely. He kisses him, then moving to cuddle. They lay there for hours, eventually falling asleep in each other’s arms.


	12. Chapter 12

When Matt wakes up with Danny in his bed, he knows that this is about as good as life can get. Danny doesn’t wake up to Matt’s alarm, so Matt slips beneath the covers to wake up Danny himself. 

 

Danny’s eyes shoot open as Matt’s lips close around the head of his cock. Danny rubs his eyes, then lifting the blanket to peer down at Matt, whose eyes glance up at Danny as he smiles coyly, mouth halfway down his shaft at this point. 

 

Danny’s head falls back as he moans. “Do we have time?”

 

Matt shrugs, humming as he deepthroats his boyfriend. “For a quickie.”

 

Danny giggles. “You’re so bad.”

 

Matt continues easing his mouth up and down Danny’s cock, one of his hands clutching onto Danny’s hip. His other hand trails up his boyfriend’s stomach to reach his chest, thumbing one of his nipples. Danny whines, murmuring, “Matt, fuck.”

 

Matt deepthroats him again before relentlessly targeting the head, soon bringing Danny to a shuddering orgasm. Swallowing, he licks his lips before resurfacing from under the covers, kissing Danny softly. Matt smiles warmly, telling, “Let’s get ready to go. I can loan you something to wear.”

 

“You’re never getting it back,” Danny teases. The two get out of bed, Matt rummaging through his dresser for clothing. He tosses a pair of jeans to Danny followed by a baseball tee with black sleeves. Finally, he tosses a black pair of socks and black briefs to his boyfriend. The two dress silently, then heading out the front door to see Brian already waiting for Matt on his front steps.

 

Without looking up from his phone, Brian greets, “Morning, Matty.” As he puts his phone back in his pocket and finally gazes at his friend, a devilish smile spreads across his face. “Oooh, somebody had a good night.”

 

“Fuck off,” Matt says flatly.

 

“Danny, you look so cute in Matt’s clothes,” Brian comments. 

 

Danny grins, replying, “Thanks. I had to cuff the bottoms of the jeans, though, because they’re too long for me.” He turns to Matt, scolding, “Stop being tall!”

 

Matt shrugs, telling, “Hey, now you’re nailing gay fashion. You’re welcome.”

 

They reach Bryan’s house, and for once, Bryan comes out on his own without his boyfriend having to beckon him. “I need an IV of caffeine right now. Or a few lines, whichever’s easier.”

 

Brian wraps an arm around him, replying, “You’re in luck. Just let me get the cocaine that I always have on my person.”

 

“That’s my idea of being prepared,” Danny says.

 

“I was a Boy Scout,” Brian explains.

 

As they file into history class, Bryan complains, “I have to give a presentation in English today. You’ll all hear me bitch about it at lunch. If I live through it, that is.”

 

Brian rolls his eyes. “You are so dramatic. You’ll be fine.”

 

The teacher enters, the bell ringing shortly after and effectively ending all conversation. Matt is listening attentively when he feels a finger poking at his shoulder. He glances back at Danny, who raises his eyebrows while licking his lips suggestively. Matt flips him off with a smirk, returning his attention to the front of the room. Not long after, he feels the toe of Danny’s shoe play with the tail of his shirt. Tracing his sneaker up and down Matt’s spine, Matt turns back again, mouthing, “Quit it.”

 

Danny pouts, still withdrawing his leg and returning his foot to its rightful place in the floor. Matt thinks that he has bested his boyfriend, but he finds himself to be wrong when a piece of paper is slipped into the back of his pants. He grabs the paper, opening it underneath the cover of his desk to read: bathroom. Meet me in five.

 

Matt looks back yet again at Danny, who gives Matt a quizzical sort of look that seems to ask, “Are you coming?”

 

Matt mouths, “You’re crazy.”

 

Danny raises his hand, asking when called on, “Can I go to the bathroom?” When the teacher nods, he stands abruptly, his fingers trailing over Matt’s desk as he leaves.

 

Matt waits a few moments, ashamed that he’s even considering it. Still, he can’t deny that he’s getting hard at the mere thought of Danny waiting for him in a stall… maybe masturbating.

 

Matt stands, asking, “Can I get my textbook from my locker?” He’s out the door by the time the teacher says yes, praying that the growing erection straining against his zipper isn’t too obvious.

 

He rushes into the boy’s room, checking himself briefly in the mirror before identifying the stall with the familiar red converse peeking out. After making sure there’s no one else in the room, he knocks lightly on the stall door. Danny opens immediately, grabbing Matt by the front of his shirt and pulling him into a biting kiss. Matt can hardly manage to close the door behind him; Danny is immediately grabbing his ass and stringing his other hand through his hair. Matt cups Danny through his jeans, making his boyfriend toss his head back and chuckle. Suddenly, they hear the door swing open. Matt’s eyes go wide with panic as Danny merely crouches up on the toilet seat to hide his feet. He’s perched there, straining to hear with a wide smile on his face. His hand roams over to the lap of Matt’s pants, stroking him relentlessly. When Matt starts to moan, unable to hold it back, Danny slaps a hand over his mouth as he continues his work. Danny’s hand undoes Matt’s jeans, then disappearing beneath the waistband of his red briefs. He kisses Matt’s neck, biting before dragging his tongue against the smooth skin. 

 

Danny can feel Matt’s hips begin to stutter, and he can tell that his boyfriend is close to coming. He slides his free hand around Matt’s waist and underneath the front of his shirt, caressing his stomach before teasing one of his nipples. Matt comes, his moans muffled against the skin of Danny’s hand. Danny waits until the other person departs before balling up wads of toilet paper in his hand. He pulls Matt’s bottoms down, cleaning him wordlessly before dumping the soiled paper into the toilet. Flushing the toilet, he kisses Matt once more before leaving, ordering, “Wait a couple of minutes before coming back to class.”

 

Matt stands there, in somewhat of a dazed state of aftershock. One thing is for sure, with Danny in his life, things will always be interesting.


	13. Chapter 13

When the group all gathers again at lunch, Brian immediately tells Matt, “You are such a hungry dick pig. Don’t think I didn’t notice what happened in history.”

 

Matt shrugs. “I don’t know what you’re talking about; I just got my book from my locker.”

 

“You must think I’m really stupid,” Brian replies.

 

“He doesn’t think you’re stupid, babe,” Bryan cuts in. “He knows you’re stupid.”

 

Brian screeches.“I hate everyone!”

 

“Did you hear about the house party this weekend?” Danny asks, desperate for a subject change.

 

Brian nods, prompting Matt to question, “Are you going?”

 

Scoffing, Brian replies, “No. Our school doesn’t like fags.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes, stating, “When everyone’s trying to get fucked up, they don’t care. Cliques die when kids get drunk.”

 

“That’s what they want you to think,” Brian insists. “If I go, they might dump pig’s blood on me or something. They’re all gonna laugh at me!”

 

“Well, Danny and I are going,” Matt says. 

 

“Let me know how that goes,” Brian replies. “Do you want to hang out after school and smoke?”

 

“Uh, always,” Matt replies. “Boy, I’m turning you into a regular stoner. Pretty soon you’ll be buying your own weed… I will be your weed parent.”

 

“What’s a weed parent?” Bryan asks.

 

“Ooh! Lesson time!” Matt announces. “So, a weed parent shows you the ropes and gives you tips, sets you up with a dealer, and shit like that. As much of an asshole as he is, Jared is my weed dad, so I have that to thank him for.”

 

“And nothing else,” Danny adds.

 

“You are absolutely correct,” Matt agrees.

 

After congregating in Matt’s bedroom, the group passes three blunts between the four of them, closing the door to get as close as they can to boxing it out. Sure enough, the room does get hazy in good time, the boys’ eyes all reddening as they finish off the blunts. After their smoke session, they all sit dumbly for a second, each slowly realizing how stoned they are. Finally, Matt asks, “Wanna watch TV?” When the trio bob their heads in unison, Matt grabs his remote, opening Hulu. “Is Broad City okay? Speak now or forever hold your lease.”

 

Brian squints. “Hold your lease?”

 

Matt nods slowly. “Speak now or forever hold your lease; they say it at weddings.”

 

“Peace!” Bryan corrects, the word hardly recognizable behind his wheezing cackling. 

 

The other two burst into laughter as Matt looks confused. “Hold your peace? Are you sure?”

 

Brian screams and Danny is wiping tears from his eyes as Bryan squeaks, “Yes, I’m sure!”

 

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” Danny teases, kissing Matt. 

 

Matt rolls his eyes, a slight blush rising in his cheeks. “Whatever.” 

 

They watch the show for some time, rolling another blunt in the process and smoking it (because it’s obligatory to smoke while watching Broad City). They’ve reached the end of the episode when Brian groans dramatically, “I need food.”

 

Matt’s eyes drift over to him lazily as he replies, “We can go raid the kitchen.” He stands, grabbing Brian’s arm and pulling the sluggish teen to his feet. Brian drags behind as the two travel to the kitchen. Matt swings the freezer door open, offering, “We can make a pizza.”

 

“That would be excellent,” Brian replies.

 

“Preheat the oven to 425,” Matt orders, withdrawing the cheese pizza and setting it on the counter.

 

“Your oven is like a fucking NASA control panel,” Brian groans. “Can’t figure out how this shit works.”

 

Matt pushes him out of the way lightly, murmuring, “Move, dumb whore.”

 

Brian pouts. “You can call me a whore, but don’t call me dumb.”

 

“You are.”

 

“Hold your lease,” Brian retorts, his eyes bugged and crossed.

 

Holding the pizza cutter threateningly, Matt warns, “You better stop.”

 

“Let’s go back until it preheats,” Brian says.

 

Matt sets the pizza on the middle rack, setting the timer. When he turns to see Brian’s jaw all but grazing the floor, he chuckles, demanding, “What?”

 

“You don’t wait for it to preheat,” Brian says. Shaking his head as they walk, he sighs. “I thought I knew you. I never picked up on the fact that you’re a primitive fucking savage… using crude tools… and fire.”

 

“News flash: people still use fire,” Matt replies as the two settle back into the room. 

 

“Shit, you’re right,” Brian admits. 

 

Eventually, Brian and Bryan depart, both still baked. As they leave, Brian calls, “You still didn’t fool me in history class, you dick pig whores!”

 

Matt laughs. “I need a new best friend.”

 

“Can I apply?” Danny asks. He kisses Matt, his arms draping over his shoulders. 

 

“No,” Matt answers. When Danny pouts and bats his lashes, he adds, “Well, you’re my boyfriend! So like… you’re already my best friend.”

 

“Aww,” Danny gushes. “And here I was ready to fight you.”

 

The two start to make out, Mart shifting to palm the front of Danny’s pants. Danny’s head falls back as he whines, grinding himself down into Matt’s hand to get more. Matt retaliates by sliding Danny’s pants off, followed by his briefs. He sucks on Danny’s neck before sliding down to tease the head of his cock with the tip of his tongue, tracing neat circles around the head before lapping the underside of his head. He hums, coaxing further down the shaft as his hand floats up to grip Danny’s hip. He feels Danny’s fingers lace through his hair and smiles, deepthroating Danny twice while humming. Danny’s moans grow louder and louder, which Matt has to admit gets him hard. He starts to palm himself as he continues his work, striving to get Danny to finish soon. This is an achievement that he makes, Danny whining under his breath as he comes. After swallowing, Matt drifts upwards to kiss Danny, his hand cupping Danny’s jaw as his tongue traces his plump lower lip. 

 

The two break the kiss, smiling at each other warmly, their faces still close together. Matt’s blue eyes flick up and down Danny’s frame. “I love you.”

 

Danny lies down, wrapping Matt’s arms around him as he responds, “I love you too.”

 


	14. Chapter 14

The first thing that Matt and Danny do when they get to the party that Friday is get themselves a drink and start a game of beer pong against another team. While Matt is a seasoned beer pong athlete, Danny has never played before.

 

“You’ll do great,” Matt assures. “Just do your best.” With that, he pecks Danny on the cheek and smacks his ass before sinking the first cup. 

 

Grimacing for fear of having a terrible shot, Danny tosses the ping pong ball, surprised when it makes it into the cup, earning him and Matt balls back. They shoot again, both missing this time. Danny groans, prompting Matt to squeeze his hand, telling, “We’ll get them next time, babe.”

 

Danny smiles widely, giving his hand a squeeze in return. The game carries on, both Matt and Danny becoming buzzed by the end. They end up winning, but instead of running the table and having the next game, they decide to ditch to go drink and socialize. Danny retreats to the keg to get them more drinks. After he fills up two cups, he’s returning to where Matt is standing when his pants are suddenly pulled to his ankles. He can feel how hot his skin is as he scrambles to put the drinks down and return his pants to his hips, covering his black briefs that had been on display. 

 

“Cute briefs, tranny!” someone calls.

 

Danny laughs mockingly, putting one beer in the crook of his arm so he can properly flip them off before returning to Matt.

 

Matt accepts the cup, asking, “Are you drunk? Your face is all red.”

 

Danny shakes his head, taking a sip of his beer. “I just got my pants pulled down without my consent so I’m blushing a little.”

 

Matt’s brow furrows, and he demands, “Who?”

 

“It doesn’t matter,” Danny mumbles, staring vacantly into the foam of his drink.

 

“Hey, come here,” Matt says, rubbing Danny’s back. His fingertips brush against Danny’s jaw as he guides his lips to his own, kissing him gently.

 

The two are still kissing when Matt is suddenly soaked, liquid pouring down onto him from above. Breaking apart from Danny, he looks up to see the goon that had tripped Danny at lunch all those days ago standing on the staircase, grinning like an idiot with his cup overturned. Biting back tears, Matt grabs Danny’s hand and storms out, tossing his beer to the ground. He hears the teen call, “Later, fags!”

 

In the driver’s seat of his car, Matt punches the steering wheel repeatedly, cursing, “God fucking damn it son of a bitch! Fuck!” Tears are streaming down his cheeks as he presses his head to the wheel. 

 

“Aw, baby don’t cry,” Danny coos, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend. 

 

“I fucking hate it,” Matt sobs. “And I never fucking cry. But I’m humiliated and I’m angry, and when I get angry, I cry.”

 

“Come here,” Danny says. He smooths out Matt’s hair, his fingers becoming sticky with beer. “Aw, honey.”

 

Matt sniffles, wiping his eyes on his sleeve. “Let’s get out of here.”

 

When he pulls into Danny’s driveway, Matt says, “I still had fun with you. I love you.”

 

“I love you too,” Danny replies. He kisses Matt, his hand resting on his shoulder. “Face time me when you get home?”

 

Matt bobs his head. “I’m going to shower first, though. My hair is fucking disgusting right now.”

 

“Face time me in the shower,” Danny says.

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “You fucking dork.”

 

Danny waves as he leaves, smiling despite the turn that the evening has taken. Matt can’t help but to grin back, waiting to see that Danny makes it safely inside before heading to his own house.

 

Once he gets in his door, his mom is waiting for him in the living room. “Hey, Matty.”

 

“Hi.”

 

When he passes her, she grabs him by the arm, pulling him back to her side. She sniffs him, demanding, “Matthew, why do you smell like a brewery?”

 

Matt can hardly look at her, his eyes burning a hole in the ground. He can feel the tears start to come back, and the last thing he wants to do right now is cry to his mom like some sort of baby. 

 

“What’s the matter?” she asks, her voice going from a stern tone to genuine concern. She pushes a hand through his hair, grimacing as she feels the sticky texture against her fingers.

 

Feeling defeated, the tears finally fall as Matt mumbles in a small voice, “Some kid poured his drink on me.”

 

“Come here, sweetie,” his mom comforts, wrapping him in a hug. No longer caring about seeming childish, Matt allows himself to hug her back and bury his head into her shoulder until his sobs have resided. 

 

Matt pulls apart finally, saying, “I’m going to take a shower.”

 

His mom nods. “I love you, kiddo. You’re a great kid, and I’m lucky to have you.”

 

“Thanks.”

 

On his way to the bathroom, Matt runs into Jared, who physically recoils once he catches a whiff of Matt. “You fucking reek.”

 

Rolling his eyes so hard they practically go into his skull, Matt explains for what feels like the hundredth time already, “This kid poured his beer on me.”

 

“Who?” Jared demands.

 

“Why do you care?” Matt counters. “You fuck with me all the time.”

 

“Yeah but…” Jared sighs, continuing, “You’re my brother. We’re family; I have your back. Now, who spilled the fucking drink on you?”

 

“Peter Weland,” Matt replies.

 

Jared nods. “He’s getting his ass kicked.” With that, he leaves, so Matt heads to the shower, surprised that his brother has chosen to stand up for him. 

 

Once he’s out of the shower, he wraps a towel around his waist, face timing Danny within the confines of his room. Danny answers embarrassingly fast, per usual. “Hey, babe.”

 

“Hi,” Matt replies. He squints, studying Danny’s familiar expression. “Are you jerking off?”

 

“Yeah,” Danny answers earnestly.

 

Matt cackles. “Ew.”

 

“Well, I’m not used to having sex so often. So when I don’t get any, I have to jerk off like I’m thirteen again or something.” Danny bites his lip, ordering, “Lose the towel if you want to help me.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes, stripping his towel off nonetheless. As he stands there nude, he starts playing with his own cock, replying, “At least angle the camera so I can see you at work.” 

 

Danny grins mischievously, following the directions to show off his cock, the head soaked in precum. He moans softly as he rubs his thumb against the underside of the head, Matt easing a finger between his thighs at the same time. Seeing Matt begin to finger himself, Danny gushes, “That’s so hot.” The two carry on like this until both boys have orgasmed, cursing under their breaths. 

 

“We should do that more often,” Matt says. “I’m going to head to bed soon. I love you.”

 

“Love you too, babe. Goodnight,” Danny replies, kissing two fingertips and pressing them to the camera before hanging up. Matt flops himself into his bed, falling asleep within minutes.

 


	15. Chapter 15

That Saturday, Matt’s phone is blowing up with texts from Brian. He face times him, Brian picking up right away. “What do you want?”

 

“Wow, nice to see you too, bitch,” Brian retorts.

 

Matt rolls his eyes, replying, “Hi, Brian. How are you?”

 

“Why I am doing fantastic, thank you for asking,” Brian answers. “Today is one of the last days that the weather will be nice enough to go to the lake. We should go!”

 

“Yeah, that sounds fun,” Matt agrees. “I’ll see if Danny can come. Are you bringing your boy?”

 

“Of course,” Brian replies. “Come over to my house and I can drive us all there.”

 

“Uh, no, I’ll tail you instead,” Matt says. “I don’t want to lose my lunch.”

 

“You’re so weak,” Brian tells. “See you in ten?”

 

“Sure.” Matt hangs up, then immediately calling Danny.

 

“Hi,” Danny says. He’s still in his bed despite it being one in the afternoon. 

 

“Did you just wake up?” Matt asks.

 

Stifling a yawn, Danny bobs his head. “About ten minutes ago.”

 

Matt laughs, telling, “Brian, Bryan, and I are going to the lake since it’s going to be too cold soon. Do you want to come with?”

 

Nodding again, Danny chirps, “Sounds fun. Pick me up in five?”

 

“I’ll be there,” Matt says. “Bye, babe. See you soon.”

 

Danny waves before hanging up, then racing throughout his house to gather swim trunks, a towel, and sunscreen. He waits on his porch for Matt, who honks as a greeting when he pulls up next to the curb. Danny hops into the passenger seat, the two listening to the radio as they make their way towards Brian’s house. 

 

Matt parks in the driveway behind Brian’s car. Turning off the engine, he and Danny spring out and race to Brian’s porch, ringing the doorbell incessantly. Brian answers, wearing a muscle shirt and neon green swim trunks. 

 

“How have I not been blessed by your biceps until now?” Danny asks. 

 

“Why, thank you,” Brian replies, batting his lashes as he flexes his arms. He turns his head back into the house, calling, “Let’s roll, babe!”

 

Bryan surfaces, wearing a blue bucket hat and matching trunks. Matt bursts into laughter, pointing at the ridiculous hat. “Come on, dad at a barbecue!”

 

Bryan rolls his eyes. “Shut up. I’m very fair skinned; I fry if I don’t wear the damn thing.”

 

The four boys pile into the cars, heading out for the lake for one last time before autumn reaches its colder days. They pull up to the beach, pleaded to see that no one else is there. Matt rushes into the water without a thought, diving beneath the surface. Danny lags behind, his arms crossed as he shivers. Brian is dragging his boyfriend by the arm, who is complaining that the water is cold. Finally, Brian hoists his boyfriend over his shoulder, making the smaller teen shriek in protest. Finally, Brian tosses him into the water with a loud splash. Bryan resurfaces, throwing himself at Brian as he curses him out. The two wrestle in the water, Brian dunking him a few times. 

 

“It’s so cold,” Danny whines. He’s standing in the water at knee level, shivering. “I don’t want to go father. I know when that water hits my dick I’ll shut down.”

 

“Come on, babe, get in,” Matt encourages. “If you do it fast you won’t even notice.”

 

Danny shakes his head, his feet planted firmly in the sand. Matt pushes his hand rapidly against the water, sending a large spray of water over Danny. Danny yelps, now wet but still shivering. Arming himself with a handful of wet sand, Danny creeps up behind Matt before dumping the sand down the back of his trunks.

 

“Ah! Stop!” Matt whines. He squirms away, his hand reaching down the back of his trunks as he shakes his hips, trying to coax the sand out. “You son of a bitch.”

 

The two swim for a while, Matt planning his revenge on the down low. He swims up to Danny, looping his arms around his neck and kissing him. His hands trail down his sides, then ramming beneath his trunks and clutching onto his camouflage briefs, pulling upwards. He lifts Danny out of the water by his underwear for a few moments, Danny’s voice a mixture of laughing and whining for him to stop. Matt finally lets go, telling, “That’s what you get for wearing underwear under your trunks, you dork.”

 

“Nice camouflage!” Brian calls. “Are you going hunting later?”

 

Danny flips him off, then turning to Matt and saying, “If you’re going to do that, you might as well set a safe word.”

 

Matt’s eyes widen. “You’re into that?”

 

Danny nods, blushing the slightest bit. He forces his underwear back into his trunks as Brian and Bryan swim up. 

 

“You missed it; we got in an awesome dunking war,” Brian says. “Bryan almost drowned.”

 

Coughing up water, Bryan whines, “I told you I’m not a strong swimmer.”

 

“Let’s have a chicken fight,” Danny suggests. He turns to Matt, telling, “Let's switch things up, you top.” With that, he disappears underwater, allowing Matt to mount his shoulders. 

 

Brian looks to his boyfriend, ordering, “Get on my shoulders, you waif of a man.” He submerges himself, resurfacing with Bryan now on his shoulders. He and Matt start to fight each other, struggling to push the other over. Finally, Bryan manages to push Matt to the side, sending him and Danny underwater. The two surface, both sputtering as Bryan triumphantly pumps his arms. He jumps off of Brian’s shoulders, dipping underwater for a brief moment before resurfacing. 

 

The boys hang out in the lake until the sun starts to set, sending all of them clamoring for the shore. Matt and Danny get settled in his car, Matt groaning, “I think there’s still sand in my ass.”

 

Grinning smugly, Danny replies, “I think it’ll be there for days.”

 

When the car reaches Danny’s house, Danny kisses Matt, his hand resting against Matt’s chest. Matt’s hand slips around Danny’s waist, grabbing onto the waistband of his underwear and tugging gently. Danny smirks, breaking the kiss as he says, “Goodbye, babe. See you later.”

 

“Bye bye,” Matt replies. He watches as Danny disappears inside his home before leaving, turning up the radio as he pulls back onto the street.

  
  



	16. Chapter 16

At lunch the following Monday, Brian asks, “Did anyone see that shiner on Pete Weland?”

 

Matt smirks and nods. Noticing this, Danny gasps loudly. “You didn’t.”

 

“No, but Jared did,” Matt replies smugly.

 

Bryan blinks. “Did I miss something?”

 

“When we went to the party Friday, Peter dumped a beer on my head,” Matt explains, hopefully relaying this information for the last time. “So Jared went off on him.”

 

“Your brother?!” Brian asks in disbelief. When Matt nods, Brian adds, “Aw, maybe he does have a heart. A little one, granted, buried somewhere.”

 

“Right? I’m not gonna lie; I never expected him to follow through,” Matt admits. 

 

“Maybe siblings could be cool I guess,” Danny mumbles. 

 

Matt is sitting in his home room, for once not drawing aimlessly and actually spending some time to do some free reading. He feels his phone vibrate in his pocket and finishes the paragraph he’s on before pulling it out, checking to see that he’s received a message from Danny. It reads: out for a cigarette at my usual spot. See you after class, babe.

 

Matt, accompanied by Brian and Bryan, heads out to the familiar spot behind the school. Immediately, he can see that Danny is being restrained by two teens, his pants pulled to his ankles and his face as red as his briefs. One more teen is emptying out the contents of Danny’s backpack, strewing his possessions across the pavement and kicking them around. Pulling out his taser, Matt charges at the boys manhandling his boyfriend, shouting, “Let him go!” The teens take off as Matt’s taser crackles threateningly. Danny returns his pants to his hips, his face still scarlet. 

 

Matt brushes Danny’s shoulder, advising, “If this is a trend, maybe you should stop taking smoke breaks at school.”

 

Cracking a sheepish grin, Danny admits, “You’re probably right.”

 

Bryan and Brian jog up, starting to gather Danny’s belongings from the ground. Matt and Danny join, the four soon returning everything to his backpack. Slinging his bag back over his shoulder as they start their walk home, Danny says, “Thanks, guys.”

 

“Anything for our favorite chola,” Bryan replies.

 

“Are we down to hang out?” Matt asks.

 

“And do what?” Brian responds.

 

Matt shrugs. “Get high like we always do. Um… we could do like a game night, that could be fun.”

 

“I’m down,” Danny chirps.

 

“Me too,” Bryan agrees.

 

“Same,” Brian adds. 

 

“Nice,” Matt says. “I have Monopoly, Scrabble, Sorry, Candy Land, cards, and Twister.”

 

“I’m always down to kick some ass in Sorry,” Danny replies.

 

“I would love to play Twister,” Bryan mentions. “I’m extremely flexible and I’m ready to destroy everyone in the only area that I can.”

 

They reach Matt’s house, instantly putting in the work (and blunts) to get obscenely high before touching any of the games. They start with Candy Land, figuring that the game is so simple that they won’t be able to mess it up.

 

“This is like a new version, huh?” Danny asks, choosing the red piece. “The art is all different.”

 

“Yeah, they made the peppermint dude into a total daddy,” Brian gushes. “This is gay fan service and I am eating it up, honey.”

 

“You want to fuck a cartoon,” Matt says.

 

Brian blinks, nodding vehemently. “Yes, yes I do. He’s not the first one, either. Gary Oak? Danny Phantom? Scar from the Lion King?”

 

“Wait, isn’t Gary Oak like ten?” Bryan asks. 

 

“Don’t ruin my fantasy with logic,” Brian scolds. 

 

“Guess who just got double orange, bitches,” Matt brags. “I’ll send you a postcard from the Candy Castle.” 

 

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Matty boy,” Brian warns. “I just got a one way ticket to the Molasses Swamp.”

 

“Fuck you,” Danny says. When Brian ends up winning, it takes everything in Danny not to flip the board. The four move onto Twister, Bryan volunteering to go first while Brian opts to man the spinner and order the other boys around. 

 

Several moves in, Bryan is nothing short of a contortionist while Danny is whining and wanting to call it quits. 

 

“Please stay in the game,” Matt pleads. “Don’t leave me with the fucking gymnast.”

 

Danny collapses finally, shaking his head. “I can’t fucking do it.” He crawls over to sit next to Brian, flicking the spinner and calling, “Matt, left foot green.”

 

“Should I save myself the embarrassment?” Matt asks aloud.

 

“I would,” Bryan replies. 

 

Matt collapses in a heap, groaning loudly. “I give up. I forfeit, I’m throwing in the dowel.”

 

“Towel,” Brian corrects.

 

Matt narrows his eyes. “Don’t ruin this for me.”

 

“Is it time to play Sorry?” Danny asks, unable to hide his childlike excitement.

 

Matt bobs his head. “Yes, it’s time to play Sorry.”

 

Again, Danny chooses to be the red player, while Matt picks blue, Bryan green, and Brian ending up with yellow. They play, trading a rapidly dwindling blunt between each other. Danny ends up winning, just as he predicted. Pulling his shirt off, he takes a victory lap around the room, swinging the garment over his head in celebration. “Get fucked! I win! Suck my dick!”

 

“I will if you give me a minute,” Matt replies. 

 

Later that night, after Bryan and Brian have departed, Matt ends up doing just that. However, after Danny comes, it’s clear that Matt isn’t through with him yet. He suggests, “Is it cool if I tie your arms up?” 

 

“Yeah,” Danny answers. “Sounds hot.”

 

Matt smirks, fastening Danny’s wrists to either post on the headboard with scarves. He sucks on his chest, making Danny throw his head back as he lets out a low moan. Matt gazes down at Danny’s cock, grinning smugly. “You’re already hard again just because you’re tied up, you pervert.”

 

“Guilty,” Danny giggles. As Matt’s hand closes around his cock finally, he grinds against his palm, desperate for more contact, which Matt grants him. As he pulls out lube and a condom, Matt applies lube to a few of his fingers, slipping his hand between his thighs to start prepping himself, seeing as Danny’s hands are literally tied. “That’s so fucking hot.”

 

Matt grins, his eyes screwed shut as he fingers himself. He teases Danny’s cock before placing a condom over the head, easing it down the shaft with his lips. Straddling Danny, he starts to ease down onto his cock, moaning loudly. Danny is a whimpering puddle beneath him. Matt makes out with him, his hands fondling his nipples as he begins to ride his boyfriend’s dick. They don’t last long before Danny comes, Matt following shortly after, finishing on both himself and his boyfriend. He collapses next to Danny, exhausted. He pulls off the condom, tying the end before sending it sailing into the wastebasket. He sighs, his eyes shifting over to Danny. “Shower?”

 

Danny kisses him. “You read my mind.”

 


	17. Chapter 17

When Matt walks Danny to the door, he can see that his mom is already home. Fighting the urge to kiss his boyfriend goodnight, he simply hugs him instead. “See you tomorrow.”

 

“Bye,” Danny replies, his smile wide as he leaves.

 

“How was your day?” Matt’s mom asks.

 

“Good,” Matt answers. “How was yours?”

 

“Fine,” she replies. “I have an insane hankering for ice cream right now. Do you want to come with? I’m going to hit up DQ.”

 

“Sure,” Matt says, leaving with his mom and settling into the car.

 

After they both have their dip cones, Matt’s mom begins, “So, I’ve been hearing some things… you know how parents talk. I’ve been thinking about how I want to go about this conversation, and I figured it’s best that I just go ahead and say it.” She turns to Matt, asking, “Matty? Are you gay?”

 

Matt feels as though the air has been sapped right out of his lungs. When he tries to speak, nothing comes out, so instead he just nods. 

 

Matt’s mom bobs her head in response. “I love you, Matt. I just wish you didn’t feel like you had to hide it from me.”

 

They sit in silence for some time until Matt musters up the courage to share, “I have a boyfriend.”

 

“Who is he? Do I know him?” Matt’s mom asks.

 

“Yeah, it’s Danny. You just saw him,” Matt answers. 

 

“Ooh, Danny,” she replies. She’s quiet for a moment, then adding, “He’s pretty cute, huh?”

 

Matt smirks, nodding in agreement. When they pull into the driveway, he says, “Thanks, mom. For being cool.” He hugs her before heading back inside. On his way to his room, he runs into Jared. “Hey.”

 

“Hey.”

 

“I saw Pete today,” Matt says. “Thanks for fucking him up. That was pretty cool of you.”

 

Jared shrugs. “It was nothing. He’s a little bitch.”

 

“Could you do me one more favor?” Matt asks.

 

“Name it.”

 

“Can you stop calling me a faggot?” Matt pleads.

 

Jared can see the hurt in his little brother’s eyes as those words leave his lips. He nods, assuring, “Yeah. I’m sorry, by the way.”

 

Matt’s eyes go huge. “You’re what?”

 

“Don’t push it,” Jared threatens.

 

“Got it,” Matt replies, disappearing into his room. He calls Danny, flinging himself onto his bed as his boyfriend picks up. 

 

“Hey,” Danny says.

 

“Hi,” Matt replies. “So, today my mom found out I’m gay.”

 

“How did that go?”

 

“Pretty well, actually,” Matt admits. “I was pleasantly surprised. She found out that we’re dating, too. She thinks you’re cute, by the way.”

 

“That means a lot, coming from your mom,” Danny replies. “She’s totally hot.”

 

“Ew! That’s my mom, you fuck,” Matt chuckles. Matt pauses, then mentioning, “You know, I’m sure she’d love to sit down and meet you. You should come over for dinner sometime this week.”

 

Danny’s heart skips a beat. “Wait, like dress up and stuff? I dunno; that sounds pretty nerve wracking.”

 

“Please babe,” Matt pouts. “I’ll have to do the same with your parents once they find out.”

 

Danny rolls his eyes so hard that he’s surprised if Matt can’t see it through the phone line. “If she finds out. My mom fucking wishes.”

 

Matt frowns. “I’m not trying to preach at you, but maybe you should be more honest with your mom.”

 

“You’re probably right,” Danny sighs. “You know what, I’ll do it. How does Wednesday night sound, Matty?”

 

“Sounds amazing,” Matt gushes. “I love you so much, Danny. Goodnight.”

 

“I love you too, angel,” Danny replies warmly. “Night night.” Hanging up, he settles back into his pillows with a sigh, not laying there for more than a few moments before his hand drifts underneath the front of his pants. 

 

Meanwhile, Matt is nodding off in his own bed. When he wakes in the morning, he feels as if he hardly slept at all. He barely has the energy to coordinate his outfit before leaving the house, feeling drained and a little grumpy. He sees that both Brian and Danny are sitting on his porch when he steps outside. “Hey, guys.”

 

“Morning,” Brian responda.

 

“Hi, baby,” Danny answers. His hand immediately clasps with Matt’s as they start their walk, his freehand fumbling with a cigarette. 

 

“I wish you wouldn’t smoke,” Matt says earnestly.

 

Grinning sheepishly as he exhales a fine cloud of smoke, Danny flicks ash from the end of his cigarette with a shrug, replying, “Maybe one day I won’t feel the need.”

 

Wrapping an arm around Danny’s waist, Matt presses a firm kiss against his forehead. “I love you either way.”

 

“You two make me sick,” Brian groans. “I love you, no I love you, give me a break!”

 

“Are you and Bryan going through shit?” Danny asks. 

 

Brian shrugs. “Eh, things are a little weird because of this one thing that happened. I don’t really know what to do about it.”

 

“Well, ask us,” Matt suggests. “Couples led couples therapy. So what’s up?”

 

Brian scoffs, shaking his head as he confesses, “Bryan’s a junior, so he’s already started looking at colleges. But when he goes to college, he’ll have to move away. And I don’t know if I can do it, not being around him 24/7. I don’t know if I’m cut out for it.”

 

Matt and Danny are silent until Danny offers, “You know, you have a year and a half to think about that. I don’t even know what Danny and I are doing about that yet.”

 

Danny scrunches his nose, shaking his head vehemently. “I don’t wanna think about it.”

 

They arrive at Bryan’s house, today Danny leaping forward at the opportunity to summon Bryan from his home. He knocks thrice, his fingers intertwined as his leg hinges femininely as he waits. Bryan answers, a blue bandanna wrapped around his head and oversized sunglasses. “Why, good morning!” He walks alongside Danny, joining the other two boys. “Matt, Brian. Good morning.” He hurries to catch up with his boyfriend, looping his arm through his. 

 

“What’s with the getup?” Brian asks, clearly amused at the sight of his boyfriend. When Bryan doesn’t answer, Brian pries his finger underneath the bridge of the sunglasses, pushing them down to meet his eyes. Seeing that they are red and swollen, Brian gasps. “Are you stoned? Right fucking now?”

 

Wheezing, Bryan bobs his head stupidly. Matt and Danny start to crack up, prompting Bryan to laugh along as well. 

 

“You should not be allowed to have your own weed,” Brian groans.

 

“I agree,” Bryan drawls. “Because I'm like a little kid with Halloween candy; I can’t pace myself. I have a problem.”

 

“If you get caught, I swear to god,” Brian growls.

 

“I won’t,” Bryan insists. “At least I shouldn’t. Relax, babe.” His hand slips up the back of Brian’s shirt, rubbing his bare back. He pecks him on the cheek, then breaking contact as they approach the school. The four file into their history classroom, delighted to learn that they will simply be watching a movie during class.

 

The movie isn’t even through the opening credits when Matt feels his phone go off in his pocket. Checking it discreetly under his desk, he sees Danny has texted him: you look so hot today. You should wear beanies more often.

 

Matt smiles, texting back: I will just for you. You better be open to hang out after school, cutie.

 

Danny texts back almost immediately: anything for you. Matt grins widely, turning his phone down as his eyes return to the screen.


	18. Chapter 18

“Who wants to get high and then go roller skating?” Bryan asks. The four are on their usual walk back from school that Monday, Bryan leading the pack.

“Honestly that sounds amazing,” Danny replies. “I’m game; I’m totally down. And I don’t want to jinx it, but I think it come become a really dope tradition.”

 

“You know what, since it’s 2019 and everything is faster, let’s fucking kill two birds with one phone. Let’s hotbox on the drive up,” Matt says.

 

“We can take my car,” Brian offers. “I don’t even mind if it reeks after; it’ll give me street cred. Maybe then people will think I’m cool.” He pauses, adding, “Maybe you shouldn’t use expressions, Matty. They’re not for everybody.”

 

“Let’s roll some blunts at my place,” Matt tells. He starts jogging as they get closer. 

 

“He runs like such a fucking idiot,” Bryan snickers under his breath.

 

Danny nods. “Something about it makes him look like a dinosaur. I bet he got teased a lot in elementary school.”

 

“Oh, all the time,” Bryan assures. 

 

Matt excitedly ushers everyone in, calling, “Take your shoes off, you heathens.”

 

“Do you have condoms at the door?” Brian asks. “Because my boy’s ass is looking  _ right _ !” He smacks Bryan so hard on the rear that the smaller boy jolts forward.

 

“Get the fuck out of my house,” Matt replies flatly. They trail back to his bedroom, where he and Brian immediately get to work on forming the blunts. “Are we gonna four blunt four man dream team this gig?”

 

“Uh, we better,” Brian says, bringing his tongue up the length of the blunt. 

 

“I’m not gonna be able to skate worth a shit if I’m baked like a cake, babe,” Danny whines.

 

Sealing the blunt with a lighter, Matt raises an eyebrow. “Now, I know my little weed gremlin didn’t just complain about getting high.”

 

Danny rolls his eyes back into his head, groaning loudly. “I am  _ not _ a fucking gremlin!”

 

“You totally are,” Matt laughs. “No bright lights, shouldn’t be fed after midnight, can’t get wet.” He sets the blunt down, kissing Danny on the cheek. “Not to mention, completely adorable.”

  
  


“Aw,” Danny says warmly. “That was a long walk to get there, but thank you for saying I’m adorable.”

 

“How’s that last log coming, whore?” Matt asks.

 

Brian flips him off wordlessly before finishing sealing the blunt. “Eat my ass.”

 

“I might need some CO^2 because that shit is flat!” Matt jokes.

 

Brian squints. “Is this a fucking joke to you? I’m a thick queen, bitch, I’ll kill you.”

 

They pile into Brian’s tiny car, Matt complaining, “I’m going to backseat drive so hard.” He pulls Danny onto his lap, wrapping his arms around him as he pecks his cheek. 

 

Glancing back at the two, Bryan scolds, “Hey, that’s not safe for the road.”

 

“Your boyfriend isn’t safe for the road,” Matt counters, jerking his head in Brian’s direction. He lights up his blunt, blowing smoke directly into Danny’s face.

 

“I hate you,” Danny whines. He starts his own blunt, but when he turns to blow it into Matt’s face, Matt pushes his cheek to the side. Danny giggles, taking another pull and trying again. Matt starts chuckling too, pushing against Danny’s chest as he continues to invade Matt’s space. “Stop, you big dummy.”

 

“You two are adorable,” Bryan comments. “It’s fucking disgusting.”

 

“Ooh, is Jimmy Hendrix on the radio?” Brian asks.

 

Matt shakes his head. “That’s Pink Floyd, you fucking moron.”

 

“No, honey, it’s Hendrix because it’s haaaazy in here,” Brian replies with a shit-eating grin. As his passengers collectively groan, he shrieks. “Fuck every single one of you, I’m hilarious.”

 

Once everyone’s blunts are finished, Brian rolls the window down to air out the clouded car. They pass around a single bottle of cheap cologne, each taking a turn dousing themselves to cover the skunky smell of weed. They reach the rink finally and climb out, none of them acknowledging how excited they are until they head inside. 

 

“I can’t freaking wait to hit that wood, bitch!” Danny whispers to Matt. “I’m peeing.”

 

Matt’s eyes flick down before meeting Danny’s again. “You better not be. I love you, but not that much.”

 

Danny pushes Matt slightly, telling, “You are such an asshole.”

 

Matt is sent sailing down the carpeted pathway to the rink. He holds out his hand dramatically, his other pressed to his chest. Danny races to catch up with him, nearly knocking him over as he flings himself at his boyfriend. 

 

Bryan races past, Brian clunking along shortly after, wheezing, “Wait up!”

 

They race around the rink, Danny proving to be the clumsiest skater as he takes a few tumbles in the hour or so that they skate. After a particularly hard fall, he crawls for a few moments, telling Matt, “I don’t want to fall anymore.”

 

Matt helps him to his feet, clutching onto his hand as his other hand flies to the small of his back. “Come here, you big idiot. I won’t let you fall.”

 

Bryan zooms by, startling Matt and nearly sending both him and Danny to the floor. Matt flips him off, calling, “Aw, come on! Not all of us are good at things, god!”

 

Brian ends up skating by next, not being quite as good at skating as his better half but still being skilled enough to bring Danny’s pants to his ankles as he whizzes by. Danny yelps in surprise, struggling not to fall again as he grabs his jeans, pulling them back up to his hips and covering his white briefs. “I fucking hate you!” 

 

Matt kisses Danny briefly, then smiling mischievously as he tells, “Watch this.” Abandoning Danny’s hand, he skates in short strokes, quickly picking up speed. When he catches up to Brian, he launches himself at his friend, bringing them both to the ground in a glorious heap.

 

They got kicked out after that. Not even bothering to dispute whether or not Matt had malicious intent or was exhibiting dangerous behavior, the four teens stomp back into their sneakers before returning to Brian’s car. As they settle in, Danny leans forward in the backseat, grabbing a small tuft of hair and pulling hard.

 

“Ow!”

 

“That’s what you get, bitch,” Danny says. “I literally freaking hate you, by the way.”

 

Brian flaps his hand as he backs out of the parking space, replying, “It’s not like anyone else was in there or anything; it’s just us.”

 

“And the employees!” Danny insists. “What if they saw?”

 

“Then your chances with that one with the nose ring are totally fucking shot,” Bryan says. When Danny shoots him a quizzical look, Bryan explains, “I saw him checking you out.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes, huffing, “Whatever. It’s not like he’d actually land a date with him or anything.”

 

Danny smirks, laughing as he says, “You’re so jealous!”

 

Rolling his eyes somehow harder, Matt shakes his head. “No. I’m not.”

 

“You totally are!” Danny teases, pinching his cheek. “Because you love me and you don’t want anyone else to look at you.”

 

“I wouldn’t worry too much, Matty,” Brian assures. “If you ever see anyone staring at your man, they’re probably just wondering if Ryan Ross has always been Mexican and they’re just noticing now.”

 

“Fuck all the way off,” Danny curses.

 

“You do kind of look like him,” Matt mutters, shrugging. 

 

“Shut up.”

 

Per usual, Matt walks Danny home, their hands clasped together the whole way. As they reach Danny’s house Matt sighs, asking, “Are you ever gonna tell your mom?”

 

Danny looks to him with puppy eyes. “I will when the time is right. I promise.” He kisses Matt for a few moments, then pulling him into a tight hug. “I love you.”

 

“Love you, too,” Matt replies. “I’ll see you at dinner on Wednesday.” He pushes a loose strand of hair behind Danny’s ear before he leaves, waving as he heads back towards his house. 

  
  



	19. Chapter 19

When there’s a knock on the door that Wednesday afternoon, Matt springs up from the couch, rushing to answer. When he opens the door, he sees Danny, dressed neatly in black slacks and a black and white vertically striped button up tucked into his pants. Matt almost doesn’t recognize him at first; his hair is even combed. “You look so cute!” Matt gushes. He hugs him tightly, kissing him before stepping back, both of his hands grasping ether of his boyfriend’s arms. “I might pass out. You’re so handsome.”

 

Turning a deep shade of red at an alarming rate, Danny’s eyes drift to the floor as he mumbles his bashful reply. “Thanks. Also, no, you.” He grins, looping his arms around Matt’s neck as the two kiss. 

 

“My mom won’t be home for half an hour,” Matt says, briefly glancing at the clock on the wall. His hands trail around Danny’s waist before landing on his ass. He squeezes with both hands, kissing him again as the two slowly begin to migrate towards his bedroom. Once inside, Matt locks the door before returning to Danny, immediately getting him down on the bed and unbuttoning his shirt. With each button he undoes, he places a tender kiss against the newly exposed flesh. Danny’s fingers comb through Matt’s hair lovingly as his head falls back. Matt palms Danny through his slacks, the form fitting pants leaving little to the imagination. One of his hands sneaks around his hip and underneath the seat of his pants, grabbing his ass. “Wait… are you wearing a thong?”

 

Blushing a little, Danny bobs his head. Matt withdraws his hand, completely ending the moment as he says, “I’m sorry, just give me one second.” He stands, pacing around the room for a few moments. He goes to the window, opening it and shouting outside at full volume, “Thank you, God!” He slams it shut, returning to the bed where Danny is still laying, laughing at his boyfriend’s reaction. “I don’t know what I did to deserve this, but thank you.” He kisses Danny roughly, his hands working to undo his pants. “I need to see right away.” He pulls his pants off, tossing them to the side as his hand slips underneath the front of the panties. Danny moans, grinding his hips a little as Matt continues, two of his fingers brushing against Danny’s jaw as he guides his lips to his own.

 

Danny pulls Matt’s shirt over his head and his hands are immediately toying with his nipples as they continue to make out. He drops one hand to fondle Matt through his jeans, then quickly undoing his belt and coaxing both his pants and underwear down his legs. Danny grabs Matt’s wrist, ending the handjob that he had been thoroughly enjoying. Matt’s brows furrow in confusion, but he smirks as he watches Danny sink and close his lips around the head of his cock. He moans lowly as Danny eases down his shaft, one hand closing around the base of his cock as the other claws into his hip. Danny continues his work until Matt is hard, then withdrawing and kissing him. “Where’s the lube?”

 

Matt points at the nightstand drawer. As Danny shifts over to retrieve the lube and condom, turning his back on Matt, Matt shamelessly checks out his ass, so thankful for the red thong. “Fuck. Please wear thongs every day until you die.”

 

Danny giggles, kissing Matt once again. Applying lube to a few of his fingers, he replies, “I don’t think it will be nearly as cute when I’m sixty.” He continues to make out with Matt, slipping his hand between his thighs and gently pressing his index finger in. It’s not long before he’s adding a second, then a third. As he curls his fingers and pushes them back and forth, his other hand wraps around beneath the head of his own cock, teasing himself. Seeing this, Matt scoffs, pushing his hand away and picking up where his boyfriend left off. In return, Danny starts to work Matt’s cock, eventually withdrawing his fingers. He waits until Matt’s cock is rock hard and weeping before he pulls away momentarily to put the condom on and spread lube across his length. He makes out with Matt, his hand returning to his boyfriend’s cock as he eases inside, grinding his hips as he rocks back and forth. His other hand drifts up Matt’s torso, playing with his nipple before trailing up to his jaw absently. When his fingers are close enough, Matt takes two of his fingers in his mouth, sucking on them as he makes eye contact with Danny. Danny can practically feel his dick twitch inside of Matt, and he goes faster and harder, making Matt’s moans grow louder and louder with each thrust.

 

Danny can tell that he must bump Matt’s prostrate, because Matt’s cries reaches a fever pitch at each contact. “Fuck! There.”

 

Danny obliges, ramming into his prostate a few more times until Matt comes, hitting Danny’s chest and stomach in the process as well as his own torso. Danny comes shortly after, whining throughout. He pulls off the condom and ties it before tossing it into the trash can, kissing Matt. He looks down at himself, mocking a frown at his boyfriend. 

 

Grinning sheepishly, Matt says, “Sorry.” He grabs his own t shirt off of the ground, offering it to his boyfriend wordlessly.

 

“You gross boy, no!” Danny laughs, shoving the garment away. “Get a towel, god damn it.”

 

Matt stands, walking daintily as he picks his black briefs off of the floor. Stepping into them, he pulls on his shirt before leaving briefly, returning soon after with a dampened hand towel. He hands it to Danny, who cleans himself before passing it back to Matt, who does the same before tossing it into the hamper. Wrapping his arms around Danny, he kisses him, cracking into a wide smile after he breaks away. “We better get dressed…”

 

Danny groans, standing up nevertheless, not bothering to cover himself like he used to. He quickly puts his outfit back on, Matt pulling on his jeans at the same time. Matt gazes at Danny lovingly, telling, “It’s crazy. You just got dressed, but I already want to tear your clothes off.”

 

Danny smiles warmly, asking, “Round two after dinner? We need to eat before; we lost a lot of protein.”

 

Matt nods, agreeing, “Absolutely.”

 

Danny smacks him on the ass, replying with a wink, “Party.”

 


	20. Chapter 20

As Matt hears his mother’s key turn in the door, his hand flies over to Danny’s back, giving a reassuring rub before his mother comes in. “Matty, hi!” she hugs Matt before extending her hand to Danny, telling, “I’m Matt’s mom. It’s nice to finally officially meet you, Danny.”

 

Danny chuckles, replying, “It’s nice to finally officially meet you, too.” His hand drops to his side. “I can see where Matt gets his good looks from.”

 

“Stop, you’re too cute,” Matt’s mom gushes. She sets her purse on the island counter, instructing, “Why don’t you boys sit down? I’ll get your brother.” With that she heads down the hall. 

 

Matt and Danny side by side with their backs to the front door. As they sit there, Danny squeezes Matt’s thigh excitedly, making Matt giggle. He pecks Danny on the cheek quickly before his mother returns, Jared in tow. “You guys are lucky; I got Pizza Hut on the way home.” She heads back outside momentarily, leaving the three boys in the dining room. Jared nods at Matt acknowledgingly, then sitting across from them. He offers a half smile to Danny, who grins through the creeping fear boner that he can instantly recognize. He crosses his legs as Matt’s mom reenters, setting the boxes along with cups and soda on the table. Matt and Jared begin opening the pizza boxes and setting them down, each helping themselves. Danny chooses pepperoni, picking all of the meat off and setting it to the side. 

 

“So, Danny,” Matt’s mom begins. She’s dabbing the grease off of her pizza with a table napkin. Danny grins sheepishly as he swipes his crust over the plate to sop up any loose oil. “How was your day?”

 

“Fine,” Danny replies. “How was yours?”   
  


“Oh, it was alright,” she answers. “Tell me some things about yourself; I don’t really know you that well.”

 

“Well, I um… I like watching movies…” he can feel Matt kick him gently under the table and continues, “I love music, I enjoy singing, writing poetry, those kind of things. I like makeup, too.”

 

She bobs her head in response, agreeing, “I love music, too. I also am partial to makeup.”

 

Danny smiles, but as his eyes wander over to Jared, he can see that the older boy’s eyes are squinting as he can almost see the hamster wheel floundering to spin in his head. His eyes are fixed on Danny, then they flick to Matt before landing on Danny again. Danny can feel himself start to sweat bullets. He turns his attention back to Matt’s mom, asking, “Do you have any fun or cute stories from when Matt was little?”

 

Matt glares at his mom. “You better not.”

 

“He asked!” she insists. She thinks for a moment, then asking Matt, “Should I tell the camp story?”

 

“Don’t tell the camp story,” Matt pleads.

  
“I would love to hear the camp story,” Danny gushes. Matt’s eyes focus on him to stare daggers. Again, he kicks his boyfriend’s shin underneath the table, only a little harder this time.

 

“Matt went to summer camp when he was seven,” his mom begins. Meanwhile, Matt is pulling up the collar of his sweatshirt to bury his entire head inside his clothing, shielding himself from the conversation. “All the time, for years, he begged me constantly to go to this camp. So, finally, I saved up the money and sent him there in July. It was a two week program, and by week one, he was calling me on the phone and writing letters about how badly he wanted to come home.” She cuts a triangular piece of pizza off of her slice with her silverware, chewing it before continuing, “The thing is, Matt was still in Pullups. I know, he was seven and in elementary school and all that, but that’s just the way that it was. He was out of them by the time he was nine, so it could have been a lot worse.” She takes a careful drink, then elaborating, “Anyways, some of the other kids that he went to camp with had noticed this and they all started making fun of him. Kids are cruel, you know. It was just childish stuff, and he can laugh about it now, but back then, he really was in full panic mode.” Her eyes bounce to check on Matt, who is still living inside of his sweatshirt wordlessly, his arms now also tucked inside the garment. “Oh, he’s being all bashful now.”

 

“They called him a name… what was it,” Jared begins. 

 

“Shut up,” Matt mumbles from inside his pullover hoodie. 

 

“Pee Pee Rodriguez,” Jared recalls. “For being seven, they came up with some funny shit.”

 

Matt’s mother can’t help but laugh, admitting, “I forgot about that.”

 

“Lots of kids actually wear Pullups after the age of six,” Matt grumbles defensively, still obscured by his top. “Something like sixty percent.”

 

“I think we all have embarrassing stories like that,” Danny replies. Under the guard of the table, his hand has drifted up the back of Matt’s top and is rubbing his back reassuringly. “I wore a Batman costume every day for two whole months once when I was six. Looking back, I think that this foreshadows my gayness today.” When his eyes meet Jared’s once more, he can see the lightbulb go off for Matt’s older sibling. Until that moment, he hadn’t picked up on the fact that Danny is bisexual. Danny doesn’t know whether to be offended or slightly proud of himself for having fulfilled the butch role in Jared’s eyes. After all, Jared’s gaydar had been sharp enough to pick up on Brian since the third grade. Danny decides to mark it up as a win, especially since his mom had recently suggested to him that if he toned down his femininity and acted more butch, maybe he wouldn’t get bullied as much. It was moments like that that continued to prolong Danny coming out to his mother. 

 

After this, Matt resurfaces, his face still flushed. “I can’t believe you fucking told him that.”

 

“Matthew, watch your language,” his mother chides. 

 

“Yeah, Matt,” Jared parrots.

 

Matt cocks his head to one side. “You said shit! Mom, Jared said shit.”

 

“Don’t be a fucking narc, you shithead!” Jared retorts.

 

At this point, Danny is biting his lip to repress his laughter, while Matt’s mom is pinching the bridge of her nose exasperatedly as if she had become afflicted by a terrible headache. As the dinner continues, Matt’s mom asks, “Danny, do you have siblings? Tell me about your family.”

 

“Um… we live on this block,” Danny shares. “My old man is out of the picture so… it’s just my mom and I. I don’t have any brothers or sisters.”

 

“Wow, an only child,” she reacts. 

 

He shrugs. “Yeah, it’s whatever. My mom is my best friend.” His voice hitches on the last word; Matt’s hand had landed on the lap of Danny’s slacks and given an enthusiastic squeeze. 

 

“You know what, that’s awesome,” Matt’s mom replies. “Sons should be close to their mothers; everyone should be.”

 

“Yeah,” Danny whines, biting his lip as Matt’s hand continues to palm him through his pants. Trying to fight back his instinct to blush the entire time, Danny pulls through the remainder of the dinner without letting out any moans or otherwise indicating that her baby is giving him a handjob underneath the table. After dinner, Jared retreats to his room while Matt’s mom temporarily leaves, prompting Danny to toss his head back with a sigh and let out a whiny, strained moan. “I fucking hate you sometimes.”

 

Matt rolls his eyes as he undoes Danny’s pants. Hooking his hand inside the front of the slacks, he drags Danny down the hallway, guiding him into his room and locking the door behind him. Immediately stripping his boyfriend of everything but the lace thong that he had gotten such a stunning preview of earlier, Matt takes off his own shirt and jeans, straddling Danny’s torso and moving his boyfriend’s hand to the lap of his own briefs. The two repeat the dance they had performed a mere hour ago, Matt having uttered Danny’s name when he orgasmed. It was something that had never happened before, and even Matt was surprised by it, but it turned Danny on to hear, and Matt loved the sound of Danny’s name, anyways.


	21. Chapter 21

Matt walks Danny home after their second round of sex, the night cool. Danny shivers as they step out, prompting Matt to pull of his sweatshirt and hand it over to Danny. Danny smiles warmly, kissing Matt before saying, “Thanks.” He puts it on, immediately holding the collar of the sweatshirt to his nose and taking a deep inhale. “Mmm. Smells like you.”

 

“Like desperation and marijuana, I’m sure,” Matt replies, his arm slinging around Danny’s waist and pulling him closer as they continue down the empty sidewalk. Danny’s head falls to rest against his shoulder, and Matt sighs contently at that. They walk a bit further, Matt finally grumbling, “I can’t believe you know the camp story now.”

 

Danny giggles. “Well, you’re potty trained now so I think we’re all set.”

 

“Your Batman story was cute,” Matt admits. “I should’ve known you were a total fucking geek.”

 

“Oh, shut up! Batman’s cool!” Danny insists, shoving his boyfriend playfully. He sighs as they approach the familiar house, turning to hug Matt goodbye. After he breaks the embrace, he kisses Matt, his hands running down his sides and around his waist to squeeze his ass before departing. He waves over his shoulder before disappearing inside his home.

 

Matt doesn’t see him until the next morning, when he and Brian have to knock on his door on their walk to school. Matt mumbles, “He’s always out by now.” Danny answers immediately, his hair a total mess. “Morning, babe.”

 

Matt pushes some fingers through Danny’s unkempt hair, telling, “Good morning. No offense, but you look like hell.” The trio start walking, Matt’s head turning over to his boyfriend’s and adding, “Your shirt is on inside out.”

 

Danny rolls his eyes. “Uh, yeah right.” His eyes wandering down, he shuts them dramatically. “Oh, fuck.” His arms disappear inside his shirt as he turns the garment around. They reach Bryan’s house, who is actually out waiting by his porch uncharacteristically.

 

When he trots to his friends, Brian wraps an arm around his waist, dragging him closer. “I can’t believe you’re up.” He kisses the top of Bryan’s head, his nose staying buried in his light hair for a few moments.

 

“Trust me, I wish I wasn’t,” Bryan groans. He turns to Danny, asking, “You just met Matt’s mom, right?”

 

Danny nods. “How did you know?”

 

Bryan smiles sheepishly. “Well, Matt tells Brian everything because they’re best friends and Brian tells _me_ everything because I’m his boyfriend and top.” When Brian overhears that last tidbit of information, he shoves his boyfriend away playfully.

 

“I hate you,” Brian pouts.

 

“You better apologize,” Matt advises. “He can be a real whiny, pouty bitch when he wants to be.”

 

Bryan’s light eyes shoot over to Brian’s, whose own brown eyes immediately avert themselves from meeting his gaze. He gasps. “I thought you were joking.”

 

“Aw, he’s so mad!” Matt gushes. Breaking his hand from Danny’s, he creeps up behind his best friend, asking, “Want to see him angrier?” With that, he grabs onto Brian’s jeans and pulls them swiftly to his ankles.

 

Nearly tripping, Brian stumbles to a stop, his face growing redder and redder as he bends over to grab his pants, pulling them back up. He had been wearing Transformers boxers, which Matt instantly felt the need to point out.

 

“Transformers underwear, very cool,” Matt teases. “I do find it really funny that you are the only one of us who wears boxers. It’s like the only butch thing about you.” Brian turns, immediately wrestling with Matt until he grabs onto his pale blue briefs, pulling harshly for a few moments before letting them go, the grey waistband returning to Matt’s lower back with a large cracking sound. Matt whines, cupping his hands over his ass as he pouts. “That hurt.”

 

“You hurt me emotionally,” Brian retorts. “That’s worse.” He takes a few more steps, his friends in close tow. “Your name is sewn into those by the way, which I find super cute, especially how it’s your full name: Matthew.”

 

Matt shoves him heavily, his own scarlet complexion now rivaling that of his best friend’s. “You are an asshole and I hate your guts.”

 

“Whatever,” Brian scoffs.

 

“A lot of moms sew their kids’ names into their underwear when they have more than one boy or girl,” Matt grumbles.

 

“Just like how a lot of six year olds wear Pull-ups, right?” Danny teases, tickling Matt momentarily.

 

Matt thrashes and recoils against Danny’s teasing fingers, retorting, “Oh, and like how everyone had a phase where they wore a costume 24/7 for months?”

 

Bryan, confused, mumbles, almost to himself, “I think this is getting personal.”

 

Brian screams, his eyes meeting with Danny’s own hazel eyes. “Did you hear the camp story?”

 

Danny nods. “His mom told me.”

 

“What’s the camp story?” Bryan asks.

 

“I hate _everybody_!” Matt curses before burying himself in his own flannel, shielding himself from the ensuing conversation, which was just Danny providing a reiteration of everything Matt’s mom had told him. When Matt resurfaces, his normally pale skin is still flushed. “Please, no more repeating that story.”

 

Danny kisses him on the cheek, rubbing his back. “I’m sorry, babe. It’s just so cute; I can’t help myself.”

 

They finally reach the school, Bryan groaning exasperatedly as they approach the front doors. “I fucking hate this place. I don’t want to be here. I hate the people, I hate the atmosphere, I hate the smell. I want to leave.”

 

“I have _never_ heard someone complain so much,” Brian says. “Your attitude is disgusting.”

 

“Here, and I’m usually told that my teeth, body, hair, face, and personal hygiene is,” Bryan replies sarcastically. He wraps his arms tightly around his boyfriend, prompting Brian to squirm under his arms.

  
“Not at school,” Brian whines, still trapped by the stronger teen.

 

Matt scoffs. “Everyone already knows you’re gay mama, they followed the smoke trail from your asshole.”

 

“I’m blocking you on every form of social media I have,” Brian warns.

 

“Finally, no more dick pics being sent to my Twitter at all hours of the day,” Matt groans. “I’m free.”

 

Before they resign to a full forty minutes of history, Danny hangs by Matt’s locker, telling, “I think I’m gonna come out to my mom tonight.”  
  
Matt squeezes his hand briefly. “Good luck.”

 

Bobbing his head, he adds, “I’m just worried she’ll freak out. You know, she’s a Mexican mom, so she’s gonna like call me an idiot or ask if I have AIDS or something.”

 

Matt gasps. “No, ma’am.”

 

He shrugs. “It could go worse. Honestly, if I make it out alive, I’ll call it a win.”  


“Facetime me after,” Matt orders. “Let me know how it goes.”  


Danny pecks him on the lips, replying, “Absolutely.”  



	22. Chapter 22

When Matt’s phone begins to buzz in his pocket, he withdraws it. Seeing that Danny is FaceTiming him, he immediately rushes to his room, closing his door before taking off his shirt (hey, maybe it will cheer him up if needed) and answering. “Hi, baby.”

 

Danny sighs, still cracking a lopsided grin. “Hi.” His eyes are red and swollen, and immediately Matt feels a rock settle into the depths of his stomach.

 

“So… how did it go?” Matt asks, almost afraid of the answer. 

 

Danny sighs again, shaking his head as he wipes his eyes. ”Um… so it could have gone worse…” his eyes shoot to the ground, and his voice is small and fragile as he continues, “She… she asked me if I’ve done it yet… like if I was still a virgin. And when I told her the truth she said she didn’t want to see me. She was saying how I should keep it a secret and how the kids picking on me can’t find out and… it was so fucked.” He rolls his eyes, finally fixing them on Matt again as he adds, “She asked if I think I’m bisexual because I didn’t have a father figure. The fucking nerve.”

 

“I’m sorry, babe,” Matt coos. “Your mom is being a real fucking monster.”

 

“Tell me about it,” Danny murmurs.

 

“Do you want me to come over?” Matt offers. “I always love to see you.”

 

Danny smiles widely, telling, “I’ll come to your place. I think if my mom saw you right now she would rip your dick off.”

 

Instinctively slapping a hand over himself at the thought, Matt nods. “Alright, well, I’ll see you soon.”

 

Danny kisses his fingertips, pressing them to the camera before ending the call. Matt sinks back into his bed, his hand creeping down towards the waistband of his pants. He teases himself, tracing his fingernails lightly against his lower stomach and the top of his pants. Finally, he begins to nudge his pants down his legs, spreading them to accommodate his hand slipping beneath his underwear. He tosses his head back, working furiously, almost in an effort to finish (or get as close as possible) before his boyfriend arrives. A second hand falls beneath the thin material of his briefs, this one desperately stretching to slip a few fingers inside himself. He starts to moan, biting his lip to make it quieter. He can feel that he’s close, when suddenly, Jared is opening his damn door without knocking. Matt immediately retracts both hands, tossing his blanket over himself and laying on his stomach to conceal his by now painfully hard erection. “What’s up?”

 

“Mom wanted to see if you want to go to a movie later tonight,” Jared tells.

 

“Mmm, maybe,” Matt answers. “Danny’s coming over, so if he’s still here, then probably not.” 

 

“Alright, man,” Jared says. He begins to close the door, then stopping with it halfway open, telling, “You know… if you’re gonna jerk off or whatever, you should probably lock your door.” 

 

Matt wordlessly puts his thumbs up, wanting to bury himself at that moment. The door closes and he groans, taking his phone out and texting Danny: hurry up. After that he opens the browser on his cellphone, halfheartedly scrolling through porn, already out of the mood that he had been so deeply into mere moments ago. All he can do is absently paw at himself, counting down the minutes until Danny arrives. 


	23. Chapter 23

Matt hears a knock on his window, and rising from his bed, he sees Danny standing outside of it, still looking a little sad and disheveled. He smiles weakly and watches as Matt opens the window, outstretching his hands to help Danny through the space. “You know, you could have used the front door.”

 

Danny shrugs, replying, “I like the window. I think it’s romantic.” He presses his lips against Matt’s, one of his hands trailing up the front of his shirt to pinch his nipple as the other wraps around his waist to clutch onto his ass. 

 

Matt breaks the kiss for a moment, asking, “Do you want to talk about what happened with your mom more?”

 

Danny shakes his head vehemently. “Absolutely not.” He kisses Matt roughly, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and dragging him to the bed. He tosses him down on the mattress, pulling his own shirt over his head and abandoning it. As he straddles Matt’s torso, he starts to grind his hips against Matt’s as they continue to kiss. 

  
Matt pulls away once more, eliciting a frustrated huff from Danny. He cups one side of his face, pulling him so close that their noses are almost touching. “Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it, baby? I feel like you’re not dealing with it.” 

 

Danny recoils, retorting, “I’ll deal how I deal.”

 

“That’s what I’m worried about,” Matt insists. “You’re not. I can tell it’s bothering you. You’re not acting like yourself.”

 

Danny scoffs, rolling his eyes dramatically. “You know what? I had a hard fucking night, so I think that I’m entitled to being a little ‘off.’ I also think that I deserve to not worry about it right this fucking instant.”

 

“All I’m asking is that you be honest with yourself,” Matt snaps. “I don’t know why you’re bringing me this fucking attitude right now.”

 

Danny shoves him away, getting up off the bed in a huff. “Fuck you. Talk about a fucking boner killer.” He leaves through Matt’s bedroom door, slamming it behind him.    
  


Matt tosses himself back onto his pillow exasperatedly, curling over and screaming into it for a few solid moments. After, he can start to feel tears clot in his chest, and he tries all he can to push them down. He texts Brian: Danny and I had our first fight. He adds the upside down smiley face, a personal favorite emoji of his best friend’s, one that Matt often didn’t have the correct context to use. This night was perhaps the best situation for that exact emoji. 

 

Brian texts back almost immediately: oh fuck tell me everything. Shortly after, Matt’s phone begins to chime, letting him know that he has an incoming Facetime call from no one other than Brian. Matt picks up, answering, “Hey.”

 

“What the fuck happened?” Brian demands. 

 

Matt lets out a long sigh, explaining, “So… he came out to his mom tonight. Which didn’t go well at all, by the way. She literally wanted to know about his sex life and brought up his bullies and his dad and a whoe bunch of shit. We Facetimed, and he was pretty upset so I told him that he should come over. Then, once he got here and we were in the middle of making out he was like… super harsh and distant so I called him out on not talking about it or dealing with it or whatever and… it just escalated from there. He told me I was a boner killer and slammed the door.”

 

Brian hisses, telling, “That doesn’t sound good at all.” 

 

“I know,” Matt sighs. “Have you and Bryan fought yet? Can you shed any light on this situation?”

 

“Not really,” Brian admits. “Other than the whole college bullshit, it’s been pretty smooth sailing.” The two friends sit in silence for a while. “What are you gonna do?”

 

“I don’t know,” Matt answers exasperatedly. “I probably will have to apologize, but also he should apologize. I’m still pissed off.”

 

“It could have been worse,” Brian says in an attempt to comfort him. When Matt looks at him with dead eyes, he adds, “Maybe you guys should give each other space for a bit. If Danny just came out and he is really going through it with the whole mom thing right now, it’ll probably do him some good to be on his own for a bit and sort everything out. I know you love him so you’re going to want to smother him, but  _ don’t.  _ Just ignore him for a few days and then try to pick up from there.”

 

Matt bobs his head. “You know, I always thought you were kind of an idiot. But that was some solid ass advice; you were channeling Dr. Phil.”

 

“More like Dr. Chill, am I right?” Brian says. 

 

“Your fucking dumb ass sense of humor is kinda helping me out right now,” Matt confesses. “So, thank you, for that.” 

 

Brian grins widely. “Anytime, buddy boy. If you ever need to hear something ludicrous, you know how to get ahold of me.” 

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “I think I’m gonna let you go. Thanks for the advice, I’ll try to follow it.”

 

“Matt, listen to me,” Brian says. “Don’t fucking suffocate him. He’ll push you away, and you’ll get hurt. Distance is the game.”

 

Nodding, although he wanted to protest this course of action, Matt tells, “I’m gonna have to let you go. Thanks again, Brian. Goodnight.” 

 

“Night, bitch,” Brian replies. “I’ll see you… and maybe Danny… tomorrow.”

With that the call ends, leaving Matt laying against his pillows, eyes closed as he tries to fight back the overwhelming urge to cry. Fiddling with his phone anxiously, he ends up opening his messages from Danny, unconsciously checking to see if an apology had been sent yet. All he reads is the last messages they had sent: you absolute fucking dork. I love you so much. Followed by Danny’s reply: I love you too, baby. And I always will. 

 

When Matt goes to bed that night, he finds himself reevaluating his definition of the word “always.” He wonders if always can be temporary, and if love can be fleeting. 


	24. Chapter 24

As they walk to school the next morning, Brian asks, “Do you think Danny will still walk with us?” 

 

Matt shakes his head. “Doubt it.” He ends up being right; they pass his boyfriend’s house without incidence. “He must have already left.”

 

They arrive at Bryan’s house and he’s already outside waiting for them. He immediately flings himself at his boyfriend, hugging him tightly, “Good morning, cutie.”

 

Brian hugs him back, pressing a kiss against his cheek. “Morning.”

 

They walk for a bit, Bryan asking, “Where’s the chola?”

 

Matt rolls his eyes. “He’s gone. We got into a fight.”

 

Bryan gasps. “What happened?”

 

“He came out to his mom and she was being super shitty. So then he came over, and we were making out and I kind of confronted him about not dealing with it. Then he got super pissed and I got super pissed and he told me ‘fuck you,’ called me a boner killer, and left,” Matt explains. It doesn’t get easier with each reiteration, in fact, it almost gets worse.

 

Brian gasps. “You left out the part where he said fuck you.”

 

Matt fakes a grin, tilting his head to one side briefly as he mumbles, “Well, he did.”

 

“I feel bad for him,” Bryan confesses. When both Brian and Matt shoot him puzzled expressions, he elaborates, “I mean, obviously he’s having a pretty rough fucking time. I’m sure he didn’t mean what he said; he was just upset and lost control.”

 

“Still doesn’t make it right,” Brian replies. 

 

When they go to history class, sure enough, Danny is there. He doesn’t claim his usual seat behind Matt, instead, he makes a pretty clear point by sitting all the way across the room. Throughout the period, Matt notices that he isn’t paying attention and has his nose buried in his notebook, pen scribbling frantically.

 

Later that day, Matt is gathering books from his locker when his eyes catch Danny across the hall, leaning against his locker as this taller guy Matt doesn’t recognize is talking to him. Matt intently watches, even as the taller guy pushes a hand through Danny’s dark hair, caressing his neck. Matt bites his lower lip as the guy walks away, fighting the urge to storm over and give Danny a piece of his mind.

 

He ends up giving in, getting in Danny’s space as he demands, “Who was that?”

 

“None of your business,” Danny replies. “Why, are you jealous?”

 

Matt shakes his head. “Get fucked.” He walks away, cringing when he hears Danny’s response. 

 

“That’s the plan.”

 

At lunch, when he’s sitting at their normal table sans Danny, Matt announces, “I saw Danny talking to another guy.”

 

“Wait, like talking, or…” Brian cups his hands over his chest and bats his eyelashes, continuing, “ _ Talking? _ ”

 

“Second one,” Matt grumbles.

 

“He’s probably just trying to make you jealous,” Bryan comforts. “You know that Danny would never cheat on you; he loves you way too much.”

 

Matt’s eyes wander across the room. “He’s sitting with him right now. God, they’re practically on top of each other. Like, get a room.”

 

“That’s fucked up,” Brian admits. “He’s definitely trying to mess with you. Try not to let it get to you.”

 

“It already has,” Matt replies earnestly. He shakes his head, murmuring, “If he fucking tries anything with that guy…”

 

“You know he wouldn’t,” Brian assures.

 

Matt shoots him a doubtful look before dismissing, “I’m not really hungry. I’m gonna peace out.”

 

“Are you sure?” Bryan asks.

 

Matt nods, swinging his bag over his shoulder as he stands. “I’ll catch you guys after school.” His friends wave as he retreats, passing by Danny’s table on his way out. 

 

He had planned on going to the library and either reading or killing time on his phone, but neither of these things are what happened. Instead, he winds up in a bathroom stall, tears streaming down his face as he sits by himself, head relaxed against the metal side of the stall and his legs curled up beneath him. He’s worried he’s losing Danny, and if he loses Danny, he knows he’ll lose himself. All he wants to do after school is confront his boyfriend and make everything okay again, but he knows that Brian had advised him to give him space. It’s just hard, being apart from Danny,  _ his  _ Danny, not some random guy’s who he’s never even seen before.

 

He hears his phone chime and answers it immediately, desperately wanting to read a new text from Danny. Instead, it’s a message from Brian reading: are you okay?

 

Matt smiles sadly, disappointed, but thankful for Brian being such a good friend and checking up on him. He texts back: I’ve been better.

 

Brian responds shortly after: fuck it, let’s get drunk tonight. You need to get that boy off of your mind.

 

Matt almost sends back “Party” in response but deletes it, being reminded too much of his boyfriend. He types: hell yeah. After that, he pulls himself together as best as he can before leaving, spending the remainder of the lunch hour in the library staring into space.

 


	25. Chapter 25

On his walk home from school later that week, Matt finds himself running right into Danny when he’s only halfway there. Of course, today is the only day that he’s walked home by himself. If Brian and Bryan were with him he could blow by as if it were nothing, and Danny probably would be intimidated by the bigger group. Matt stops as the two stand across from each other, each trying to read the other’s expression. Neither say a word, just idly taking up space as they wait for the other to speak. Looking at Danny, Matt can clearly see that he had gotten into some trouble after their breakup. His left eye is dark and swollen, his usually plush bottom lip is busted, and his entire face looks battered and sore. He can’t help but to wince and feel a sharp twang of guilt as he fills himself in on what must have happened. Danny got jumped because Matt wasn’t there to walk him home, bottom line.

 

Matt gazes at Danny’s swollen, bruised eye, and without even thinking about it, he reaches to touch it. Danny flinches away, and Matt lets his hand fall to his side as he says softly, “That looks like it hurts.”

 

“It does,” Danny murmurs, his eyes glancing at Matt only for a split second before starting back to the ground.

 

The two stand in silence for a few moments, Matt peering at his boyfriend quietly, whose eyes remain fixed on the ground. 

 

“I’m sorry,” Matt blurts. Danny looks up, his eyes wide but expression otherwise flat and unreadable. “About everything. I love you too much to worry over shit like this. I love you Danny, and that’s what matters.” Danny’s expression is still blank, and Matt is on pins and needles as he waits for his reply.

 

Danny’s eyes drift to the side as he confesses, “I’m sorry, too. I’ve just been having a hard time ever since I came out, and I’m sorry that I took that out on you.”

 

Matt shakes his head. “You didn’t take it out on me; I provoked you.”

 

Now smiling, Danny shrugs. His eyes fleet towards Matt’s own blue eyes and suddenly, he’s in his arms again and it feels familiar and right. The two share the embrace some time before Matt pulls away, raising an eyebrow as he demands, “Who did this to you?”

 

Danny rolls his eyes, mumbling, “The same guys that like to tail me home.”

 

Matt’s voice is so quiet that Danny can hardly hear him say, “I’m sorry that I wasn’t there.”

 

“It’s not your fault,” Danny assures.

 

Matt shakes his head. “I should have been there. No one was there for you; no one was there to help. It’s my fault.”

 

Danny crashes his lips into Matt’s, immediately ending all of the shameful rambling that Matt had been dissolving into, even inadvertently so. His fingers intertwine with his boyfriend’s as he stands on his tip toes, eagerly kissing him for the first time in what felt like ages. After the kiss ends he sighs happily. “I missed you.”

 

Matt bobs his head, admitting, “I missed you, too.” They start to continue the path towards Matt’s house. “So… are you coming over?”

 

Danny shrugs, replying, “If you’ll have me.”

 

Matt smirks, pulling Danny close by the hip as he assures, “Always will.” The two share another kiss, and Matt sighs as they break away, telling, “Let’s not fight anymore.” They walk towards Matt’s house for some time, Matt eventually asking, “So has everything chilled out with your mom yet?”

 

Danny nods. “A bit. She did say that she was sorry, so that’s something. I think I just caught her so off guard that she totally freaked out.”

 

“Honestly, you can pass for straight pretty well,” Matt admits. 

 

“I know!” Danny agrees. “Jared one hundred percent thought I was a straight young man. Delusional.”

 

They reach Matt’s house and immediately hole up in his room, locking the door behind them as they settle onto the bed with a pair of blunts. They calmly rest and watch TV as each boy works on his own blunt, Danny finishing his before Matt for a change. After both are stubbed out on the nightstand, the two start to make out, Danny’s hands eagerly searching the body that had been missing for what felt like so long. After all is said and done and they’re lying together nude, Danny says, “I love you so much. I hope you know that.”

 

“I love you, too,” Matt assures. “I’m so happy to have you back.”   
  
Danny presses a soft kiss to his cheek, replying, “I was never gone.” 


	26. Chapter 26

It’s a regular school night and Matt and Danny are sharing his twin mattress, the television tuned to an episode of Workaholics. Danny is practically half asleep, his face nuzzled against Matt’s chest and his dark lashes full and heavy against his cheek. Matt is absently combing his fingers through Danny’s hair, his other hand reaching for the blunt on his nightstand. He nudges Danny, asking, “Do you want to smoke?”

 

Danny’s eyes slowly blink open as he shakes his head. “I’m so tired; if I smoke it’ll knock me out.”

 

Matt lights the blunt, taking a long drag. “Did you know that our school has a winter formal?”

 

Danny scrunches his nose. “What, like a dance?”

 

“Yeah, like a dance,” Matt giggles. “What, you’re not interested?”

 

Danny shrugs, admitting, “I don’t really think I’d have fun. I don’t really like to dance, especially not around others.”

 

“You don’t like dancing?” Matt asks. As he says this, he switches from the show they were enjoying to YouTube. He searches for a song, and suddenly, his room is filling with “Tell It To My Heart.” He grins, parking his blunt between his lips as he stands, holding his hands out for Danny. 

 

Danny looks at him blankly. “You’re kidding.”

 

“Get up, baby,” Matt encourages, waving his arms welcomingly. “Let’s dance.”

 

Danny rolls his eyes, standing nevertheless. He clasps his hands with Matt’s, telling, “Just a warning, I’m a horrible dancer.”

 

“Yeah, right,” Matt replies. 

 

“No, I’m serious,” Danny insists, struggling to keep up as Matt starts to move. “You know the saying about having two left feet? Well I have a left foot and a left hand.”

 

“Just relax; you’re fine,” Matt assures. “Just get into the music and vibe with it. You’re overthinking it.”

 

Danny tries to follow this advice. “Better?”

 

Matt can’t help but laugh. “It’s still a little um… baby deer-esque, but that’s super endearing.”

 

Danny pulls the blunt from between Matt’s lips, taking a few drags before putting it back. He exhales the smoke directly into Matt’s face, smirking. “I think I can get used to this. Put another song on after this.” He kisses Matt as the two continue to dance, falling into a more synchronized rhythm. By the time the fourth song is playing, Danny has improved tremendously, and he’s even having fun as he and Matt twirl around his crowded bedroom, the weed in their systems really helping to really bring their dance party to its maximum potential. 

 

Last dance with Mary Jane is playing as they transfer a blunt, Matt’s hands slung tightly over Danny’s hips possessively. Danny’s head falls forward into Matt’s chest as he mumbles, “Today’s my birthday.”

 

“You’re right!” Matt realizes. “You’re seventeen now! You’re older than me.”

 

Danny rolls his eyes. “Barely.”

 

Matt’s hands slink around Danny’s waist before disappearing beneath the waistband of his skinny jeans, resurfacing with a fistful of burgundy briefs. He leans back, sweeping Danny from the floor by the stretched waistband of his underpants. “Happy birthday. You’re seventeen… so I get to do this seventeen times.”

 

Danny’s hands fly to the seat of his pants as he whines, “Put me down! Stop, Matt, they’re gonna rip.”

 

Matt pulls hard once more before returning the smaller teen’s heels to the ground. He finally releases the underwear with a snapping sound as they hit Danny’s lower back. He then slaps him so hard right on the center of his ass that the hit jolts him forward a few feet. “Trust me, I’m not strong enough to rip those.” He hugs Danny, kissing the top of his head and burying his nose into the soft, dark hair. “For real though, baby, happy birthday. I love you, and I might have a surprise for you.”

 

Danny’s hand traces the lap of Matt’s pants. “What’s the surprise?”

 

“I don’t want to spoil it,” Matt replies. He kisses Danny roughly, his fingers twisting into some of Danny’s shaggy hair. 

 

Danny pins both of Matt’s wrists at his sides and hovers tauntingly just inches from his lips. “Tell me.”

 

Matt pouts, but then shrugs, telling casually, “I got us a hotel room for a night.”

 

Danny swings either of Matt’s thighs around his waist as he teases, “You better call into work; I’m about to suck the soul out of you.” He begins to suck harshly on Matt’s neck, leaving a damp, glistening trail down the center of his throat. He pushes Matt’s jeans down his legs, then slipping his fingers inside of Matt’s usual grey briefs. He eases them down, then bringing his mouth rapidly over Matt’s torso until settling around the head of his cock. He hollows his cheeks as he feels a fist knot through the back of his hair. Gagging slightly when Matt rocks his way back and forth, Danny uses the extra saliva to lube up the remainder of the shaft. He spreads Matt’s legs further, going from the base of his cock, to his balls, to his ass, where he’s tracing neat, wet kisses around Matt’s entrance teasingly.

 

Matt’s head falls back as he whines, “Fuuck, Danny. So hot.” His breath hitches as Danny’s tongue first presses inside of his boyfriend, lapping in a curling motion before retreating. It then returns, coaxing itself back and forth and twirling inside of him. Matt’s voice suffers an earth-shattering crack as the tip of Danny’s tongue brushes his prostate, and not long after, he’s sending sprays of come down Danny’s throat, which the teen swallows without much complaint. Danny’s lips find their way back to his, and the two make out for a few hours, easing their way back into bed.

 

His arms wrapped around him, Matt asks, “Should we have dinner with your mom this weekend?”

 

Danny groans. “Since we fucking have to I guess.”

 

“Sounds good. Come on, babe, it’ll be fun. You can show me your room, we can fool around. It’ll be nice,” Matt assures, pushing Danny’s bangs off of his forehead lovingly. He presses a kiss against his forehead, then settling back into their embrace. “I love you. Happy birthday.”

 

“I love you, too,” Danny replies warmly. 

 


	27. Chapter 27

“Are you bringing your thing to the winter formal?” Matt asks, passing the blunt to Brian. He and his longtime friend are sharing the narrow stretch of his mattress, all but attached at the hip as their eyes stare at the television screen in front of them. They’ve been watching music video after music video, each taking turns sharing their music with the other as they progressively get higher and higher. 

 

After taking a few long drags, he hands it back, thick smoke billowing from his mouth as he replies, “First of all, calling him the thing? I love that, I absolutely condone it and I prefer that you call him that from now on. Secondly, I’m not sure.”

 

“It’d be fun!” Matt insists.

“Till I get jumped in the parking lot,” Brian retorts. When Matt shoots him his best puppy dog eyes (which are all but debilitating with Matt’s downturned, droopy sapphire eyes), Brian softens a bit. “You know I’m right, Matty. People are total fucking assholes. As much as I love Brian and as much as you love Danny, it doesn’t change anything. You know where we live and you know the monsters we fucking grew up with. I wish it wasn’t like that, but it is. If anyone of those assholes on the football team saw me with a guy at our formal, they would definitely let me know what they think about that.”

 

“I know,” Matt admits quietly. “I know and it pisses me off. All I want is to take Danny out and be able to dance with him and hold him and show him off and have a great time. It’s a bunch of fucking bullshit, what because I’m gay, I don’t get that? I don’t deserve love? Or what, I only get that in private?” He can feel himself start to get worked up, and after clocking Brian’s wide brown eyes and raised brows, he takes an extra long few drags. He shrugs, passing the roach back as he says, “I just want everyone to fall in love with him as much as I have.”

 

“That’s all anybody wants,” Brian agrees. “I love Bryan so much that I don’t understand why anyone couldn’t. That blonde little psychopath could go murder someone and I would Twitter fight with the victim’s family for not liking him.”

 

Matt’s eyes now grow as big as saucers as they shoot over to meet Brian’s. “Don’t you think that’s a little  _ fucked up _ ?” He cracks up as Brian falls into a fit of screech laughter, leaning himself against Matt as he tosses his head back. As Brian’s head settles into Matt’s chest, Matt combs his fingers through Brian’s hair rapidly, messing up his short bangs. “You know, I missed hanging out with you one-on-one. I missed your fucking dorky, deadpan fucking ass.”

 

“Aw, that’s so sweet!” Brian replies, gazing up at Matt from where he has since comfortably rested his head in his lap. “I didn’t miss you back, but… it’s nice that you thought of me.”

 

Brian screams as Matt grabs a nearby pillow and mock smothers him for just a few moments. As he releases the pressure from Brian’s entire face, Brian snaps up to a sitting position, crying, “Stop! I’m gonna pee!”

 

“You know where the toilet is, bitch,” Matt replies, still giggling as Brian springs to his feet, rushing to the bathroom with his hands clasped over the front of his jeans. As he can faintly hear his friend relieve himself with a loud gasp of relief, Matt calls out, “Do you want to watch Stranger Things?”

 

“Yes,” Brian says. “God, I can’t wait till like season season when all the actors are eighteen and I’m allowed to say they’re hot.”

 

“You are disgusting,” Matt scolds. He leans back against his headboard, Brian letting out a sigh as he sits next to his friend. 

 

They’re not even ten minutes in when Brian asks, “Do you have any snacks?”

 

Rolling his eyes, Matt replies nonetheless, “Look under the bed, you fat whore.”

 

“I’m a whore, but I will never be fat,” Brian replies snarkily, his head already buried underneath the covers hanging over the side of the bed. He returns with some chips, tossing a bag directly at Matt’s head before settling beside him, opening his own between his hands with a loud pop. Matt narrows his eyes at him, still grabbing the chips and opening them. At the end of the episode, as the credits roll, Brian confesses, “I really did miss spending time with just the two of us. I missed my Matty.”

 

“I knew you fucking did,” Matt retorts. “Miss me with that lying shit, even if it’s for a joke.” He pauses for a while, then asking, “So, you aren’t going to the formal?”

 

Brian shrugs, bobbing his head to one side as he replies, “Well, unless today’s social climate and all of history is totally reshaped and warped, I’m going to have to pass.” He tosses a chip in the air, narrowly avoiding dropping it as he adds, “I like my skin unbruised and my underwear in my pants and in one piece.” 

 

Matt piles as many chips as he possibly can into his mouth, leaning against Brian’s shoulder as he gets close to his ear and tells sultrily, “I would like your underwear so much better if it were on my bedroom floor.”

 

“Mmm!” Brian hums approvingly, snapping his fingers over his head. “That was a good one. You might get a kiss for that later.”

 

“Pass,” Matt chuckles. “I might go with Danny but… I don’t know, I guess I have to rethink some things.”

 

“Hey, I mean,” Brian says, his eyes fluttering back in his skull as he smiles. “Do whatever makes you happy. If it means so much to you, you should go.”

“I’m not sure it does, though,” Matt admits. “I think I just like the idea of having a conventional romance. Maybe I should just accept the fact that I’ll never get that.”

 

“Maybe what you guys have is better,” Brian tells. “Maybe they’re the ones missing out.”

 

“I know the hetties are, because I don’t think any of the straight guys in our grade would agree to wear a thong,” Matt responds. “Total tragedy. Also, your chances at that kiss are getting better and better.”

 

“Save it for me for Monday, that’s gonna be a hard day for me,” Brian orders.

“Why is that?”

 

Brian shrugs, shaking his head. “I just feel it.”

 


	28. Chapter 28

In almost a role reversal of the very similar dinner not took place not that long ago, Matt knocks on Danny’s door at 6:00 sharp just like he was instructed. Danny answers immediately, and his jaw drops open at the sight of Matt dressed in slacks and a dark dress shirt. Matt can’t help but blush as Danny fans himself dramatically, then pinching Matt’s cheeks as he says, “Look at you! You’re so handsome!” He kisses him, wrapping his arms around his neck and leaving them draped just like that. He inhales heavily, wallowing in the scent of Matt’s cologne. “You even have gel in your hair.”

 

“Don’t remind me,” Matt replies, pressing his forehead to his boyfriend’s. He kisses Danny again, then slipping his hands around his waist to grab his ass. “When’s your mom gonna be home?”

 

“I haven’t gone anywhere!” Danny’s mom calls from her spot across the room in the kitchen (where she can clearly see Matt’s hands all over Danny’s ass). Matt yelps in surprise and withdraws his hands, only for Danny’s mom to say, “Aw, don’t let me spoil your fun. I was a teenager once, too, you know.”

 

“Mom, this is Matt,” Danny introduces. “Matt, my mom is a ghetto chola so you’ll have to excuse her.”

 

As his mom walks by with a pot full of food, she smacks Danny upside the head. “What a way to talk about the woman who gave birth to you!” She sets down the food, telling, “You boys can take a seat and help yourselves, I’ll be with you in one minute.” She starts to rifle through the fridge, asking, “Matt, do you want a glass of wine?”

 

Matt’s eyes swell as he looks to Danny, who merely shrugs and rolls his eyes. Not knowing if it’s a test or not, Matt errs on the side of caution, replying, “No, thank you.”

 

She returns, setting a glass of wine in front of Danny before placing two beside her own plate. “I hope you like macaroni and cheese. Since Danny decided to be a vegetarian, it’s one of the few things I know he’ll actually eat. We probably have it once a week.”

 

“I do,” Matt replies. He watches as Danny piles his plate with food before handing him the spoon with a smile. Matt proceeds to scoop himself some food, his eyes still on Danny.

 

“You always lived here?” Danny’s mom asks.

 

Matt’s response is delayed; not only did it take a moment for him to register that he was being spoken to, but he was so lost in his boyfriend that it took him a minute to check back in. “Yes. We live just down the block.”

 

“Got any siblings?” she asks.

 

“An older brother,” Matt answers. “Who’s usually a dillhole, but he’s cool every now and then.”

 

“Matt gets really good grades,” Danny shares. “He’s super smart.”

 

“Oh, so you’re a genius, huh?” Danny’s mom responds.

 

Matt makes a face, crinkling his nose as he replies, “I wouldn’t say that.” He feels Danny squeezes his thigh, and when he looks over to him, Danny is giving him a “what the fuck” look. “I mean, I do well in school.”

 

“You should help out Danny, god knows he needs it,” Danny’s mom says. 

 

Danny frowns, whining, “Mom.”

 

“Oh come on, baby, it’s just in math, for the most part. I wouldn’t say that science is your strong suit, either,” she replies.

 

Danny rolls his eyes, tuning out of the conversation and instead shoveling forkfuls of pasta into his mouth. 

 

“I hate math,” Matt admits. “Too many numbers.”

 

“You seem like a good kid,” Danny’s mom says. “You don’t do drugs or anything, right?”

 

Matt can feel himself start to sweat. “No, never.”

 

“Ha!” Danny shouts. “That’s a big fucking laugh. Matty’s  a total pothead.”

 

As Matt is sitting there practically pissing himself, Danny’s mom says, “So are you, you little shit. If I catch you in my stash again it’s game over.”

 

Matt pulls his phone out under the table, texting Danny: your mom is the best.

 

“Buy me a brick and you won’t have to worry about it,” Danny retorts.

 

“Now that’s a good joke, Danny. A whole brick? That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard all damn week,” she says. She rises, picking up her plate as she dismisses, “It was very nice to meet you, Matt. I’ll be in my room. You two don’t get into too much trouble.”

 

“Bye,” Matt says.

 

“Bye, moms,” Danny calls. As she rounds the corner, his hand immediately begins weaseling down the front of Matt’s pants. 

 

“Down, boy,” Matt whispers teasingly, grabbing Danny by the shirt and pulling him into a kiss. His free hand drags around Danny’s waist, grabbing onto his ass. “You wanna show me your room?”

 

Grinning widely, Danny grabs onto Matt’s hands, his fingers lacing with his boyfriend’s as he leads him into his bedroom, a small, cluttered room with tons of posters and Christmas lights.

 

“It’s so cute!” Matt says. “Very you.” 

 

“Wanna know what the best part about it is?” Danny asks. When Matt nods, he grabs him by the ass, shoving him onto the bed and watching as the mattress ripples in response.

 

“You have a waterbed?!” Matt all but shrieks.

 

Flinging himself down next to him, Danny nods, placing his hands behind his head as he answers, “Yep. It’s pretty great.”

 

“You would have a waterbed,” Matt replies. “This is huge. It’s like finding out you’re a never nude. I’d love to crack open the pathology explaining this type of behavior.”

 

Danny snorts. “What pathology, you geek? It’s a bed!”

 

Matt narrows his eyes, throwing himself on top of Danny and wrestling with him. The two boys’ limbs frail around each other frantically as they both dissolve into laughter, until finally, Matt manages to pin Danny’s hands above his head. “Ha!” 

 

Danny looks up at him, his eyes all big and sappy and beautiful as ever. Matt presses a soft kiss against his lips, using his teeth to tug at his bottom lip. After the kiss ends, he smiles warmly. “I love you, Danny.”

 

Danny kisses him once on the lips, then again on the tip of his nose. “I love you too, Matt.”

 


	29. Chapter 29

It’s Monday morning, and as Matt’s alarm rings, all he wants to do is turn it off and roll over for another few hours of sleep. He drags himself out of bed anyways, feeling sluggish as he drifts through his room getting ready for the day. By the time he reaches his front porch, Brian is waiting for him. Brian springs to his feet, asking, “How was the rest of your weekend?”

 

“It was pretty nice; I had dinner with Danny’s mom,” Matt replies.

 

“How did that go?” Brian asks.

 

Matt shrugs. “It was alright, I guess. She’s a total fucking savage which explains Danny.” He jogs up to Danny’s door at that, knocking three times before waiting patiently. 

 

Danny opens up after a minute, looking as disheveled and tired as Matt is feeling. He kisses Matt, smiling from ear to ear. “Good morning, baby.”

 

“Morning,” Matt replies, grabbing Danny’s hand as the two start back towards Brian. Next, they stop at Bryan’s house. Today is one of the rare occasions where Bryan is already waiting for them outside of his front door. As they approach his sidewalk, he flicks the remnants of what looks like a blunt to the ground, stubbing it out underneath his shoe. 

 

As he joins them, spritzing himself with cologne before tossing it inside his bag, Brian asks, “Is waking and baking gonna be a regular thing for you now?”

 

“Only on hard days,” Bryan replies.

 

“Why is today so sucky?” Danny asks, his hand sneakily drifting from Matt’s to his boyfriend’s ass. 

 

“It’s Monday. What more do you want,” Bryan points out. “I didn’t know that there was a formal coming up, either.”

 

“Are you going?” Matt questions. 

 

Bryan snorts. “Hell no. You want me to pay money so that I can get laughed at or get a drink thrown on me or something? I’d rather get sucked by a fucking crocodile.” 

 

“Aren’t you already there? Firkus has got a mouthful of  _ tools _ ,” Matt teases.

 

“Fuck you, my teeth are fine,” Brian snaps. “And I give great head so your argument is invalid.”

 

When they reach the school, the two couples split off, Matt gathering his things from his locker as Danny stands next to him. “Are you still thinking about going to the dance?”

 

Matt tilts his head from one side to the other, replying, “I’m not sure. I think that if we went we’ll be glad we did.”

 

“Best case scenario,” Danny reminds. 

 

“Which do happen, believe it or not, you cynical son of a bitch,” Matt counters.

 

Danny giggles. He rolls his eyes, telling, “Hey, you know what. If you think that the dance will be fun, then I’m down. We can always blaze before so that way by the time we get there we’re fucking rolling.”

 

Matt places a hand on either of the older teen’s hips, pulling him closer as he presses his forehead to his, grinning. “That’s my boy.” 

 

All morning, all Matt can think of is the dance that coming weekend. He figures that sometime this week after class he’ll be able to take Danny so that they can rent tuxes. He’s so excited that he can hardly pay attention in any of his subjects, so by the time lunch rolls around, he can’t wait to just be able to relax and talk with his friends. He joins his usual table, only seeing today that his best friend is absent. “Where’s Brian?”

 

“His locker got vandalized,” Bryan replies. “And his backpack. He’s dealing with that right now.”

 

Matt does a double-take. “Someone vandalized his stuff? They broke into his locker?”

 

Bryan’s eye slides against his brow bone with exasperation as he explains, “Some douchebag wrote ‘fag’ on his locker and ‘cocksucker’ on his bag.”

 

“What the fuck?” Matt demands.

 

“I could live with having my locker defaced,” Danny admits. “But not my bag. Like, that’s my shit. I don’t care whatever anyone wants to do with the school’s property.”

 

“Yeah, so he’s kind of going through it right now,” Bryan says, his eyes wide. “I’m planning on taking him out after school to try and cheer him up. I hate seeing him like this.”

 

“I hate this fucking school,” Matt grumbles, pushing his food away. He folds his arms across the tabletop, resting his chin on them as he adds, “I wish the whole damn thing would burn to the ground.”

 

“Venmo me four hundred and we can talk,” Danny jokes. Matt cracks a smile, nudging his leg against his boyfriend’s underneath the table. 

 

Matt shakes his head, asking, “So, he’s by his locker?”

 

Bryan bobs his head. “Probably. Or maybe in the principal’s office.”   
  


“I’m gonna go see if I can track him down and talk,” Matt says, standing. He grabs his tray as he slings his bag over his shoulder, dismissing, “Bye, guys.” He pecks Danny on the cheek. “See you after school?”

 

Danny nods. “Catch you later, Matty.”

 

Matt heads out into the empty hallway, scanning the vacant hall for his friend. He paces down the corridor frantically, wringing his hands together as he continues to search for Brian. He finally catches him, all but running to meet him. He stops and he can’t help but let his jaw drop open as he reaches Brian’s locker, noticing the word ‘fag’ spraypainted across the front. “What the fuck, dude?”

 

“People are real pieces of shit,” Brian mutters. He has a black marker and is desperately trying to scribble over the slur, but the message is still clear even with the series of black marks laid overtop of it. “They really can’t let me live, huh?”

 

“I’m sorry, Brian,” Matt offers. “I wish I knew the dirtbag that did this. You know I’d send Jared their way.”   
  


Brian’s eyes meet Matt’s for the first time and he shrugs, giving a sheepish smile. “Hey. If this is how someone wants to spend their Monday morning, spray painting slurs onto a stranger’s locker, then that’s their tragedy, not mine.” 

 

Matt grins back, his eyes going back to the graffiti. “Maybe you could put a poster over it. Or like a bunch of stickers.”

 

“I’ll just fucking draw something in crayon and tape it up,” Brian admits. “Seems like a viable solution.”

 

“You know what, now would be a great time to start your portfolio,” Matt replies. “Maybe it’s a sign.”

 

“Maybe you’re a fuckhead,” Brian retorts.

  
  



	30. Chapter 30

On the day of the dance, Matt can’t help but be excited all day. He can hardly sit still through any of his classes, and his notebooks end up becoming filled with drawings and poems as opposed to actual coursework. Still, he doesn’t care; it’s Friday and all he wants to do is have the bell ring so he can rush home, get ready, and pick Danny up for the night of their lives. He still has some reservations about other students’ reactions to the same-sex couple, as does Danny, but those are mostly overruled by the sheer anticipation eating him from the outside in. 

>  
> 
> At lunch, Matt nudges Danny’s leg with his knee, asking, “Are you excited for tonight?”
> 
>  
> 
> Danny grins, bobbing his head. “A little nervous, too.”
> 
>  
> 
> “If I have a policeman at my door at midnight telling me someone got lynched…” Brian mumbles. 
> 
>   
>  “I think you guys are overreacting a little,” Bryan cuts in. “It’s not like it’s the 1950’s, come on. Give our school some credit.” He turns to Matt. “You guys will have a great time. Are you wearing matching tuxes?”
> 
>  
> 
> Matt nods. “They’re both white tuxes.”
> 
>  
> 
> “Cute!” Brian gushes. 
> 
>  
> 
> “I had to practically twist Danny’s arm to get him to wear it,” Matt says, rolling his eyes. 
> 
>  
> 
> “All I’m saying is that a full on black tuxedo is a classic look. The white comes off a little campy to me,” Danny replies. 
> 
>  
> 
> “I think the white is cute,” Bryan offers. “You guys are gonna look like two little angels. I can’t wait. You better send me pictures.”
> 
>  
> 
> “My mom will have about seven thousand, so there should be plenty to choose from,” Matt responds. 
> 
>  
> 
> Sure enough, when Matt returns to his home with Danny at eight o’clock, his mom poses them for photos and can hardly stand to let them leave until they’re fashionably late. She hugs Matt, and to both of the teens’ surprise, she embraces Danny too, before waving as the two leave. She drifts to the kitchen window, watching as the car’s headlights pull out of the driveway and fade into the inky night. 
> 
>  
> 
> Danny shifts in the passenger seat. “Damn, you better take the long way, Matt. That hug from your mom totally gave me a boner.”
> 
>  
> 
> Danny whines as he’s hit in the chest, still chuckling under his breath as Matt replies, “I don’t remember falling in love with a pervert.”
> 
>  
> 
> Danny looks at Matt incredulously, his brows raised and eyes full as he slides a hand into the lap of Matt’s pants, telling, “Then you really never knew me at all.” He pushes down the fly, reaching through the clothing to fondle Matt through his underwear. 
> 
>  
> 
> Matt moans lightly, straining to keep his eyes on the road. “Not when I’m driving.”
> 
>  
> 
> Danny doesn’t listen, only continuing to palm Matt through his briefs, then slipping his hand through to expose Matt’s cock. Danny leans over, licking his lips before sinking down against Matt’s hips, his mouth wrapping tightly around the head of his cock. Matt shudders as Danny starts to coax his damp lips up and down, dragging his tongue over the head in hot, fat laps. Matt starts to pant, his brows knitted as he feels his hips twitch and waver with pleasure. “Fuck, Danny.”
> 
>  
> 
> Danny deepthroats him, humming as he then focuses on the head of his cock, quickly bringing Matt kicking and screaming through a shivering orgasm. Danny withdraws, wiping his lips on his fingers and redoing Matt’s pants. “I was going to give you a handjob but I didn’t want to ruin the pants.”
> 
>  
> 
> Matt nods, still feeling floaty and far away. “I admire your judgment. This is a rental.”
> 
>  
> 
> They arrive at the school, and Matt parks the car before dramatically rushing to Danny’s side of the car, opening the door for him as well. Danny pushes Matt lightly as he stands, telling, “I could’ve gotten it myself, you goof.”
> 
>  
> 
> “You shouldn’t have to,” Matt replies, lacing his fingers with Danny’s and placing a kiss against his knuckles. He pays their way into the dance and leads the way, Danny trailing behind him as they descend upon their high school gym, hardly recognizable under the endless heaps of streamers, glitter, and lights. 
> 
>  
> 
> “It’s weird in here,” Danny mutters, squinting against the glare of a strobe light. “Who the hell is in charge of this shit?”
> 
>  
> 
> Matt shrugs, pulling Danny in as a slow song comes on. The two sway to the music, Danny sinking his head into Matt’s shoulder as he answers, “Student body garbage. You couldn’t catch me on that committee dead.”
> 
>  
> 
> “Hey, I wouldn’t want to claim responsibility for this fucking disastrous decor,” Danny replies. “I’d blame it on someone else if I could.”
> 
>  
> 
> As they continue to dance, one hand of Matt’s stays with Danny’s, while the other wraps fondly around his waist, resting at the small of his back. They drift across the floor gradually, Matt doing all he can to ignore the few lingering eyes he’d noticed. He tries to just focus on the song playing, an old love song that fits perfectly as they rock across the floor. He inhales, catching the familiar scent of Danny’s shampoo as well as his cologne. His hand moves from Danny’s back to his hair, where he threads his fingers through the dark locks, combing out the small tangles lovingly as they continue to turn and shift to the music. 
> 
>  
> 
> By the end of the song, Danny is all smiles, beaming at Matt when he looks back up at him. The next song is a faster one, and the two immediately pick up their dancing pace, laughing at each other’s attempts at skillful dancing. This carries on for a few songs, until Matt grasps Danny’s wrist, pulling him close and leaning in to shout over the music, “I’m gonna go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” Danny pecks him on the lips before Matt leaves, hurrying down the hall to the men’s restroom. Seeing a line, Matt groans exasperatedly, turning for the staircase to the second floor. When he reaches the second floor and tries to check their restroom, he finds that the entire floor is blocked off, the solid wooden doors locked at the top of the staircase. He huffs, sprinting through the building to the back, where he runs outside, keeping the door ajar with a branch as he relieves himself against the brick wall in the dark. It’s creepy out; he can hardly see and he’s all alone. As he goes, he hums to himself, doing all he can to hurry back inside and meet Danny. 


	31. Chapter 31

Matt’s out in the dark, his head falling back as he relieves himself next to the dumpster behind the school. Hearing the door suddenly swing open, he panics a bit, squaring up his shoulders and shifting his stance to try and maintain his privacy. “Hey. Sorry, I’m pissing out here.”

 

Just like that, Matt feels the two guys hovering behind him. His suspicion is confirmed when one of those guys rams his hand down the seat of Matt’s pants, grabbing onto his white briefs and yanking sharply. Matt cries out, his hand flying to his ass with no relief from the pain being inflicted upon him. He’s shoved against the brick wall as his heels are lifted from the ground, despite his loud protests. He can’t help himself from pissing all over the lap of his dress pants, making tears sting in the corners of his eyes as his brain flashes back to memories from camp all those years ago. As his briefs rise up his back, he cries, “Stop! Please, let go!”

 

“I thought fags liked having things shoved up their ass!” the guy replies maliciously, pulling harder. His underwear ends up ripping, of course, with a sickening cracking sound. Matt is then shoved into the dude’s friend, who passes him roughly to a third guy, who sends him flying back into the grip of his original attacker. He’s kneed in the stomach, and as his knees buckle in pain, a fist slams into his jaw, then his gut. Tears begin rushing down his face as he’s thrown to the ground, the three larger teens circling in on him. He’s kicked around for a while, one of them pulling his hair harshly as another swipes his phone from his pocket. 

 

“Aw, that’s so cute. He has a picture of him and his boyfriend as his lock screen!” he teases, holding the phone out proudly for the others to see. “Do you suck his dick? Or does he suck your dick?”

 

“Give it back,” Matt pleads, hardly able to conjure the energy to speak. He pulls himself to his knees. He’s smacked in the face and immediately falls back against the cold concrete. “Please.”

 

The guy pretends to hand it back, then quickly turning and spiking the phone against the cement. Matt can hear his screen shatter and winces. Meanwhile, the asshole scrapes together the remains of his I-phone, shoving it down the front of Matt’s slacks, dragging a heavy and excruciatingly sluggish hand over his crotch as he withdraws his hand, locking eyes with the helpless, exhausted boy bleeding beneath him. The boys saunter off not much later, chattering loudly into the cool night. Matt manages to stifle his weeping, struggling to his feet and stuffing the shreds of his underpants back into his bottoms. Then, he pulls his destroyed phone from the lap of his pants. He wanders back inside, feeling as though everything is in slow motion as he staggers across the floor, eliciting wild looks from the other kids as they notice his bloodied face. He quickly tracks down his boyfriend, immediately flinging himself into his arms and dissolving into sobs once again. 

 

Danny holds Matt so tightly he’s surprised his ribs don’t crack. One hand running rapidly through the back of Matt’s hair, Danny asks, “Who did this to you?”

 

Matt sniffles, replying, “It doesn’t matter. They’re long gone.”

 

Danny squeezes him once more, briefly pecking him on the lips before lacing his fingers with his boyfriend’s. “Let’s go home. I’ll take care of you, angel.”

 

Danny drives the pair back, despite only having an (undeserved) learner’s permit. After curb checking, Danny screeches the car to a halt, parking it before rushing outside to run and open Matt’s door. Matt rolls his eyes at this, mumbling, “I can get it myself, you dork.”

 

“Shut up,” Danny replies. When Matt’s brow arches, Danny softens, reassuring, “I told you, I’ll take care of you.”

 

As soon as they’re inside, Danny sits Matt on the edge of the tub. He helps him shrug out of his blazer and starts unbuttoning the crisp dress shirt, revealing the white undershirt beneath. Matt keeps the tank top on, kicking out of his dress shoes and getting his pants down his legs as Danny rifles through his medicine cabinet. “Where do you keep your first aid kit?”

 

“I don’t think we have one,” Matt admits. 

 

Danny sighs, settling instead for a washcloth dampened with soapy water. He presses the cloth to Matt’s cheek, making his boyfriend hiss. “Sorry, baby.” He glances down at Matt’s waist and his eyes widen. “They really fucked your shit up.”

 

With one hand, Matt grabs onto a torn piece of his underwear and pulls, stripping the ruined fabric from himself and leaving him nude from the waist down. He throws them into the trash before flipping his head back, telling, “I would kill for a blunt right now.”

 

Danny kisses him, squeezing his arm as he tells, “I’m gonna get your stuff and an ice pack. Be right back, start running water for a bath.”

 

Matt pushes the plug into the drain, starting to fill the tub with warm water. He pulls off his top, leaving him naked on the end of the tub, a washcloth pressed against his battered face. He turns, pushing his feet into the water and sighing. Danny returns, pressing a pack of frozen peas to Matt’s eye with one hand and his weed supplies with the other. Matt begins rolling, watching as Danny removes the washcloth, taking Matt’s hand in his as he eases the cloth over his scraped, bloodied arms.

 

Danny sighs, shaking his head. The cloth transfers to Matt’s other arm, and Danny takes that hand in his. “Poor baby.” 

 

Matt shrugs, confessing, “It’s nothing you haven’t been through.” When Danny smiles sheepishly, he scoots closer to him, adding, “I’m glad I have you here to take care of me.” He kisses Danny, his hand draping over his neck. “I love you.”

 

“I love you, too,” Danny replies softly. “Now get in the bath.”

 

“Only If you join me,” Matt counters, palming Danny’s crotch encouragingly. 

 

“Since you insist,” Danny replies. He stands, tossing the bloodied washcloth to the side before starting to take off his suit. He strips down to a pink thong, which he can see Matt practically drooling at. He abandons that as well, grabbing and lighting the blunt as he sinks into the water on the opposite end of the tub, facing Matt. He passes it, Matt taking a few drags and turning his back to Danny, settling in between his knees and resting his head against his chest. He takes one of Danny’s hands and kisses it, wrapping it around himself. 

 

“Stay the night,” Matt pleads.

 

Danny takes another drag, answering, “You don’t have to ask twice.”


	32. Chapter 32

When Brian shows up on Matt’s porch Monday, Matt briefly considers faking sick for the day. He spends about ten minutes that morning in the mirror just glowering at his battered reflection. One of his eyes still refused to open and had swollen up like a tennis ball, and he ended up needing stitches near his temple on his right side and they were looking gnarlier than ever. 

 

He couldn’t help but to wince when he saw Brian’s reaction to his temporarily muffed up mug. At first, Brian doesn’t say anything. In fact, they walk almost halfway to Danny’s house in complete silence, the only sound being the faint clapping of their shoes on the concrete. Then, Brian asks, “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

Matt looks over at him, and after a moment of not saying anything or seemingly having any reaction at all, he mumbles, “I got jumped at the formal by a group of guys. You were right.”

 

“I didn’t want to be,” Brian replies. “Especially not since you got hurt.” They walk further, and then he adds, “So, what now? These guys get busted?”

 

Matt shakes his head. “I’m not going to do anything about it.”

 

“Why the hell not?” Brian demands. “Matt, you have stitches on your fucking face. They didn’t write on your backpack, they inflicted bodily harm. You need to say something.”

 

“What am I supposed to say?!” Matt retorts. “And who do I say it to? Hey principal homophobe and counselor useless, I got jumped because I’m a giant fucking faggot and you better do something about it.”

 

Brian stops walking, and Matt takes a few quick paces before also coming to a stop. He shuffles back to his friend, who tells, “I’m sorry, Matt. It’s just not fair. And I know life isn’t fair and all that bullshit but it doesn’t make it any fucking easier.” 

 

“I know,” Matt replies solemnly. The two look at each other for a moment, and the next thing Matt knows, he’s being pulled into a tight hug. Brian’s chin resting on Matt’s shoulder, he squeezes his friend once before letting go. After that, they continue walking, and they don’t say anything else because they don’t need to. 

 

The entire school day, Matt can’t help but feel his ears burn and his heart lurch in his chest as he feels every eye fixate on him. On the bruises, the stitches, the fucked up eye. The cut on the bridge of his nose and his split lip. He wants to dig a hole in the ground and stay there. By lunch, he’s had enough of it, and he retreats to his increasingly familiar place in the library instead of the cafeteria. He hasn’t been sitting there reading for more than a few minutes when Danny flings himself into the wooden chair across from him. Danny fishes his textbook out of his bag and stands it up on the table between them, hiding behind it and nodding for Matt to join. Matt can’t help but to roll his eyes as he too takes cover behind the stiff spine of a chemistry textbook. 

 

“You aren’t eating?” Danny asks.

 

“I’m not hungry,” Matt replies.

 

“You still have to eat, babe,” Danny says. When Matt just shrugs his shoulders, he continues, “How are you holding up? I know everyone’s talking about you and I’ve been there, it fucking awful. It’s miserable, it’s like you can’t think of anything else and you’d rather be anywhere else.”

 

Matt finally gives him something. “I feel like everyone’s staring at me.”

 

“Probably because they are,” Danny answers earnestly. “They’re wondering who that handsome boy is.”

 

Matt snorts, then dips his chin down when the librarian shoots him a warning glare. He feels Danny’s hand wrap around his own beneath the table and smiles. Then, it feels as though a dagger has been thrust handle deep into his gut as the mental flashback of that foreign, greedy hand down the front of his pants as he lay bleeding. He sniffles, then asks, “Baby, can I talk to you about something?”

 

Danny bobs his head. “Anything. You know that.”

 

Matt nods in return. “Something else happened… on the night of the winter formal. When I got jumped.”

 

“What?”

 

Matt tries to talk, but his voice clots deep in his throat and nothing comes out. He huffs in frustration, then pulls out his phone and holds it up, gesturing to it. Danny takes the hint and withdraws his own, and Matt can see his boyfriend’s face when he reads what happened. Danny’s hand tightens around Matt’s, and his eyes are big and sad. “I’m so sorry that happened to you. I wish I could take it back for you.”

 

“I love you so much,” Matt tells, his voice warm and gentle.

 

“Almost as much as I love you,” Danny replies, a smile rising on his crestfallen face.

“Brian thinks I should talk about what happened,” Matt shares. “Tell somebody.”

“I think you should, too,” Danny replies. “Especially taking into consideration what you just told me.”

“You mean what I just texted you,” Matt corrects flatly. When Danny shrugs, he can’t help the grin from spreading across his face. “What if I don’t?”

“Then I’ll love you the same,” Danny answers. “I trust your decision and whatever you choose is the right thing. You need to know that.”

Matt considers this, his head nodding. “I’ll think about it.”

  
  


Danny squeezes his hand once more before letting it go. “Don’t think too hard. You can’t afford to get hurt any worse.”

 

Matt giggles. “I swear to god, I fucking hate you sometimes.” When the librarian shoots him another threatening look, Danny rolls his eyes back into his head and puffs his cheeks, dramatically standing and collecting his book. He winks at Matt before leaving, just as the bell for class starts to chime.


	33. Chapter 33

Matt has never been inside the principal’s office before. He passes it every day, occasionally glancing through the thin sheet of glass to glance upon whatever hooligan was pushing body heat into the stiff leather chairs in the front office. So any times, it had been Brian who was occupying that space, waiting to be told off for some smart remark he couldn’t bite back. But today, Matt found himself circling the small space as he waited to be called in, his hands shaking. When they tremble so furiously that he fears they’ll fall off, he jams them into his pockets and bites his bottom lip. After what feels like a painstakingly slow few minutes, he’s called in, and his back hasn’t been warming the leather of the seat for more than a second when he blurts out, “Something bad happened to me at the formal.”

 

The principal seems a bit taken aback by Matt’s bluntness, but nods at him, encouraging, “Why don’t you tell me what happened. Is that how you got those bruises?” 

 

Matt bobs his head in return. “It is. Three students targeted me outside and started… started hitting me and shoving me around. They broke my phone and beat me so hard I wanted to die right there. I asked them to stop over and over, and I never fought back because… I knew it was no use.”

 

The principal calmly leans forward, setting his folded hands on the large wooden desk. “What would you like me to do about it, Matthew?”

 

Matt represses his eye roll and settles for a stupid expression as he replies, “I would like to see them punished. Suspended, ideally.”

 

“Did anyone else see this happen? Besides you and these three boys?” he asks. 

 

“No,” Matt answers. “They kind of made sure of that.”

 

‘What are their names?” he questions. 

 

“Rodney Mastin, Derrick Carter, and Jacob Stevens, why does it matter though?” Matt demands. “Do they get a pass depending on who they are? Is there a database of kids that won’t get in trouble for this kind of shit?”

 

“Watch your language, please,” he orders. “I understand that you’re upset. But you have to understand, it’s hard for me as a principal to immediately embrace your word as the truth against three other students.”

 

Matt scoffs. “What, you think I’m lying?”

 

Shaking his head, he insists, “I didn’t say that. Now, do you know why these boys targeted you? Why not someone else?”

 

“You want the truth?” Matt grumbles. 

 

“That’s all I’m asking for,” he replies. 

 

Matt shrugs his shoulders. “I’m gay. I like to have relationships with guys, and for that, they thought it would be cool to destroy my property, humiliate me, and beat the living hell out of me. I never did anything to them; I hardly even know them.”

 

“So, they beat you up because of your sexual orientation is what you think?” he asks. 

 

Matt glares at him. “It’s what I know.”

 

The principal merely shrugs, practically falling over himself to stammer, “W-well you can’t be certain of that, now can you? I think that we should bring these boys in and get their side of the story. Do you think that’s fair?”

 

“What other side of the story are you expecting?” Matt snaps. “What, they’re gonna say I provoked them? That we’ve been going back and forth at it for a few days? That the only reason they painted the concrete with my blood is because I like a dick here and there?” Matt rushes to his feet, not even hearing the principal’s scolding tone, or even his own voice. All he can hear is his pulsing blood pressure in his ear and his throbbing heart lurching in his chest. “Fuck this.” He storms out, slamming the door and swinging his bag over his shoulder. He walks briskly, no longer caring about the attention he’s drawing as he rushes down the crowded hallway, ramming into others without a second thought. He doesn’t even hear their cries, “Watch it! Move! Fag!” He doesn’t break this speed until he reaches Danny’s locker, where he finds his boyfriend and meets his eyes, unable to say anything except, “They’re not in trouble.”

 

Danny slams his locker shut hearing that, his brows knitting. “What the fuck? They gave you fucking stitches, put you in the fucking hospital, and they’re not getting punished? Who the fuck are these pieces of shit. Tell me.” When Matt shares their names, Danny heads hotly to the center of the hallway, climbing on a chair sitting outside of the first floor office to holler amongst the wave of students, “Hey, Rodney Mastin, Derrick Carter, and Jacob Stevens like beating up faggots! They like beating up faggots because they’re homophobic! They’re not gonna be suspended, either. So we’re gonna have to handle this ourselves, right fags and fag sympathizers?!” Matt is surprised at the reaction, some people yelling their support or clapping as Danny speaks. He has to admit, it kind of turns him on, especially seeing him hop down from the chair and push his bangs to one side. He returns to Matt’s side, grabbing his hand and leading his boyfriend on their walk home. 

 

“Danny, you  _ did  _ that,” Bryan says. “You really stood up for us faggots.”

 

“It’s about goddamn time,” Brian croaks. He grabs Danny’s arm, telling, “You did us a true service.”

 

Danny shrugs away Brian’s touch, replying, “Someone had to say something. I hope those guys catch the message. If not, hey, maybe Jared can help send it home, right Matty?” Danny nudges Matt playfully, who shies away. “What, what’s wrong?” 

 

Matt merely snatches his hand away, pushing past the group and storming home alone in silence. When he flings himself onto his mattress, he silences his phone after Danny texts: what’s going on? Turning over, he screams into his pillow until there are tears streaming down his face. He falls asleep soon after, wanting the familiar body to share the space but at the same time knowing that it’d be like a revolver in his sheets.


	34. Chapter 34

When Matt awakens from the short nap that had come over him like an awful cold, he feels as though he hadn’t slept at all. Danny had texted him again while he was sleeping, the brief, blunt message reading: wow, seriously? Matt sighs as his eyes, still glassed over with sleepiness, slowly drifted over the words. He can’t help but to replay the day’s events over and over in his head like some sort of sick eternal highlight reel. The principal’s office, cussing him out, then Danny boldly standing in the hallway and making a call to action directed at anyone else who felt that Matt didn’t deserve to get jumped that fateful night. 

 

Scrolling through his notifications absently, Matt realizes he also has a few missed facetime calls from Brian. Clearing his throat as he presses the call button, he immediately winces as Brian answers the phone screeching. “Matt, why the fuck are you just calling me back now?”

 

“I was sleeping,” Matt grumbles, rubbing his knuckles against his good eye. “This better be good.”

 

“What the hell happened between you and Danny?” Brian demands. “One thing I know, Danny is up standing up for you and yelling at everyone, the next, you’re throwing a little bitch fit. What’s your deal?”

 

Matt narrows his eyes. “What’s my deal?” When his friend nods, Matt shrugs sarcastically, replying, “Maybe it could be that Danny felt the need to tell my business to the entire fucking school without asking me first.”

 

Brian snorts, then gives an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Matty, but it’s not like they haven’t noticed. They would have come to that conclusion themselves, all Danny did was get them there a little faster. He was sticking up for you, you should be thankful.”

 

Matt shakes his head. “Well, I’m not fucking thankful, I’m pissed. He’s acting like I can’t take care of myself.”

 

“There’s a difference between loyalty and pity, you just haven’t found it yet,” Brian counters. When Matt’s eyes dim in response, he comforts, “He cares about you a lot and he proved that. He just wants to make sure that you’re okay and those guys get what’s coming to them.”

 

Matt sighs. “I know. He meant well, it’s just.... he should have talked to me first. That’s all, I just wished he would have asked me before announcing to everyone that I got the piss beat out of me for being gay.”

 

“Actually, you’re probably right,” Brian agrees. “He did do it with the best of intentions though, you know that.”

 

Matt shrugs. “So what now?”

 

“Maybe you should talk to him,” Brian suggests. “Even if it doesn’t seem like it, I’m sure he wants you to.” Matt rereads Danny’s last message in his head. “I’m gonna let you go, Matt. Let me know if everything between you and your boy blow over. Good luck.”

 

“Thanks, I’m gonna need it,” Matt replies. “Bye, dude.” Brian flashes the peace sign wordlessly in response before hanging up. Matt exhales sharply, selecting Danny’s contact. Only, when he goes to call him, his finger hovers uselessly over the button as his eyes stay locked on the contact photo. Instead, he texts him, telling: I just wish you wouldn’t have told everyone my business. I know you meant well babe, but it was kind of humiliating.

 

He sees that Danny reads it almost right away, and the notification telling him he’s typing disappears once or twice before lingering for what seems like an eternity, finally manifesting itself in the form of a text: I didn’t mean to. When Matt doesn’t reply, Danny texts again, this time the text showing up right away: I love you. I would never hurt you on purpose. Matt cracks a small smile at that. Danny has always been a sweetheart, he’ll give his boyfriend that much. 

 

Matt replies: I love you too. I know you were trying to help and I appreciate that. Matt watches the typing notification appear again before an incoming facetime from Danny is flashing brightly across his screen. Propping himself up in bed, Matt answers immediately. “Hey, baby.”

 

“Hi,” Danny replies. He’s sitting in his bed, his shirt off and blanket halfway up his torso. “I’m sorry for embarrassing you. That’s not what I wanted. I just didn’t want those assholes to get off scot free.”

 

Matt bobs his head. “I know. Your heart was in the right place. It always is.” He smiles, and Danny returns the grin as he shifts in his bed, rolling over and tucking his arm under the pillow. 

 

“I’m happy we’re talking again,” Danny says earnestly. “Don’t do that again.”

 

“Do what?”

 

“You know what,” Danny replies, half chuckling. “Just suddenly going cold like that and pulling away. I don’t want you to push me away, Matt.”

 

“You’re right,” Matt allows. “I’m sorry.”

 

“I guess we’re both kind of in the wrong, huh?” Danny offers with a smile. 

 

Matt shrugs. “If you want to think of it that way, sure. What you did is definitely worse.” 

 

He cracks up, as does Danny, still managing to tell, “Fuck all the way off! I mean it.”

 

“Are you going to bed soon?” Matt asks, picking his weed supplies from his drawer on the nightstand. He holds the blunt paper between two fingers as he starts to withdraw his grinder, taking a pinch of weed and laying it inside the paper. 

 

Danny shakes his head. “I’ll be up all night, you know me.”

 

“Wanna come over and smoke this with me?” Matt asks. “I like being high, but I like being high better with you.”

 

“I can’t decide if that’s romantic or if you’re just a pothead,” Danny teases.

 

“You coming over or not?” Matt challenges.

 

“I’m on my way,” Danny replies. He presses a kiss to his finger, pressing it to his front camera. “I love you. Bye bye.”

 

“Goodbye,” Matt replies. “I love you, too.” Danny doesn’t hang up until Matt is finished speaking. Matt likes that about Danny. In fact, he likes a lot of things about Danny, like the patches of light freckles on his shoulders and the way he twitches as he’s falling asleep. He likes these things so much that he thinks he couldn’t live without them, that the rest of his life would make the most sense with Danny in it. He just doesn’t want to say that out loud. Or, maybe, he just can’t find the words. 


	35. Chapter 35

It’s nearly midnight that Friday when Matt hears a knock on his door. He immediately freezes in his bed, his hand withdrawing from its familiar place beneath the lap of Danny’s briefs.

 

“Who is that?” Danny asks, rubbing his eyes.

 

Matt smiles, kissing Danny softly. “Only you would fucking fall asleep mid-handjob.” He stands, grabbing his pajama pants from the floor and pulling them over the bare lower half of his body. 

 

As he walks to the door, Danny fluffs the comforter, hiding himself as his hand flies into his underwear to pick up where Matt left off. “I’m  _ sleepy,  _ not asleep. There’s a difference. Now answer the door and get back over here before I finish without you.”

 

“I don’t think I can answer the door in seven seconds,” Matt replies with a smirk.

 

Danny cackles, still retorting, “Fuck all the way off!”

 

Matt cracks his door ajar, his body blocking Danny’s view of whoever had knocked. “Yeah?” A pause. “No, what about him?” A longer pause. “Fuck, really? Like, right now?” There’s an excruciatingly long pause, and Danny watches as a wide grin spreads across Matt’s face. He bobs his head vehemently as he says, “Well, thank you. Seriously, you didn’t have to do that.” He closes the door, walking back and standing by the end of the bed to disrobe again before slipping back underneath the covers. He kisses Danny, his teeth biting against his lower lip and refusing to let it go for a blissful moment.

 

“What was that about?” Danny asks. 

 

“Oh, Jared beat the shit out of Derrick Carter. He said he’s one out of three to go,” Matt says. He laughs, adding, “I never expected him to do anything about it.”

 

“That’s awesome, baby,” Danny replies. He kisses Matt, holding his hand before pulling it back beneath his briefs. 

 

Matt disappears beneath the covers, slipping his fingers under the waistband of Danny’s underwear and starting to pull them down. Only, Danny stops him, clutching onto his own underpants and telling, “That’s okay, babe. Hand stuff is good.”

 

Matt bursts into laughter. He pokes his head out from the covers, asking, “Are you feeling okay?” He presses a hand mockingly to Danny’s forehead. “Who are you to say no to head? Are you a droid? Doppelgänger? Spy?”

 

“It’s not that big of a deal,” Danny insists. “I just… want to switch things up.”

 

Matt shrugs, telling, “Suit yourself.” He sinks back under the blanket, again gripping Danny’s bottoms as he says, “At least let me get them out of the way.” When Danny’s hold remains firm, Matt tickles Danny’s ribs, and as Danny’s hands fly away as he laughs, he takes advantage of the situation and yanks the underwear down his thighs. When he sees Danny’s usual nest of dark pubic hair totally gone, he is a little surprised, to say the least. “What happened?”

 

“I tried shaving more than I usually do and I guess I just got carried away. I was gonna hide it from you till they grew back; it’s embarrassing. I look like a little boy,” Danny whines.

 

Matt takes a minute to consider this confession, then asking, “What, you expected me to not see your dick for two whole weeks? On our fuck schedule?” 

 

Danny shrugs. “I mean, you’re a top. You might have never noticed, but I didn’t think about head.”

 

“Actually, I think I like it,” Matt says.

 

“Really?” Danny asks incredulously.

 

“Yeah, it makes it look bigger,” he teases, not missing a beat.

 

He can hear Danny both scoff in offense and crack up. “FUCK you. I mean it.” 

 

“Shut up,” Matt retorts, bringing his hand up and down the shaft at the same time. He closes his mouth around the head and hears his boyfriend whimper in appreciation from outside of the covers. Running his tongue over the tip a few times, he pushes himself down the length of his cock rapidly, fighting his gag reflex as he deepthroats him. He can hear Danny’s moans loudly, and if he weren’t under the covers, he would slap a hand over his mouth. He lets it go, stopping for a few seconds. He holds three fingers out from the blankets, finding Danny’s mouth quickly. Danny sucks on the fingers, and Matt’s mouth again wraps around his cock as he slides his forefinger between Danny’s thighs, tracing around his ass teasingly before gradually pushing in. 

 

He continues to bob up and down his cock, at the same time, pressing a second finger in and scissoring the digits. He curls them towards himself as he deepthroats Danny once more. He’s hardly had the third finger in for six seconds before Danny comes, cursing under his breath as his hips quiver with ecstasy. Matt swallows, licking his lips as he resurfaces, kissing Danny softly. He cups either side of Danny’s face lovingly, his thumb tracing circles into one of his plump cheeks. “I love you so much.”

 

“I love you, too, Matt,” Danny replies, swinging an arm around Matt’s neck in a half-hug as he plants a long kiss on his lips. 

 

Matt pulls Danny into a hug, and the two end up drifting off like that, Danny’s head resting against Matt’s chest and his arm draped over his torso. As he’s falling asleep, his arm wrapped around Danny, Matt presses his nose down into the crown of Danny’s hair and inhales, his eyes fluttering shut as the familiar scent makes him feel warm inside.

 


	36. Chapter 36

When Matt’s phone goes off and he sees it’s  
an incoming FaceTime from Danny, he breaks into a grin, his hand sliding down the front of his pants almost subconsciously. However, when he answers the call, the mood quickly changes as he sees his disheveled boyfriend. His eyes are red and swollen, his cheeks tear stained, and the small scraping of eyeliner he usually put on his waterline has smeared across his face. He can’t even talk at first, he just looks at Matt with those big sad green eyes as his lip subtly trembles.

“Babe, what the fuck? What happened, Danny? Are you okay?” Matt demands.

Danny shrugs, his arms limp as he does so. He shakes his head, sighing loudly before explaining, “So my dad is back in town.”

Matt’s eyes go huge. Other than Danny having fleetingly mentioned that he’s glad his father is long out of the picture in the Noreiga household, Matt hadn’t heard a word about him. “What happened?”

“He’s staying with us,” Danny begins. “When he walked in the door, he almost left right away because he and mom got into a screaming match after he saw my eyeliner and told me I look like a Nancy boy.” He trills his lips, rolling his eyes back into his skull as he grumbles, “It’s all so fucking stupid. I’m an idiot for letting it get to me like this.”

“You can’t help that you have feelings, Danny,” Matt counters. “He can’t talk to you like that.”

Danny shrugs weakly. “He does. Even worse, I don’t have siblings so when he’s not yelling at mom I’m only one around for him to freak out at.”

“Do you want me to come over?” Matt offers. “I have the car, I can leave right now.”

Danny shakes his head violently. “No, no, I couldn’t have you here. It’d be too humiliating.”

“I’m not saying this helps, but everyone has family drama bullshit,” Matt comforts. “No such thing as a perfect family. Also, you’ve literally watched Jared rip my underwear off my body, fuck you mean humiliating?”

Danny chuckles at that. “Either way. I don’t want you to have to be around that. Not to mention, he’ll probably pull you into the drama too.”

Matt scoffs. “I’d like to see that old fart try it. I could read him to filth.”

“Last thing I need is for you two to go down swinging,” Danny replies, the warmth still present in his expression and tone. 

“Why don’t you come over here, then?” Matt suggests. “I can pick you up if you want.”

Again, Danny hesitates. “Since he just got back he’s been riding my dick nonstop. He probably won’t let me go out, let alone look at him wrong.”

“Let’s hang out over FaceTime,” Matt tells warmly. “We haven’t had a date in a while. Think of this as date night.”

Danny rolls his eyes, smirking as he asks, “So what? I’m going to watch you get high knowing damn well that I can’t? Then my dad will run in here and call me a pussy or something and tear down a poster or break a mug or some shit like that.”

“Your dad is a literal demon,” Matt sighs. “Your mom must be 100% angel then. I'm so glad you took after her.”

Danny pretends like he’s cringing as he puffs his cheeks and crosses his eyes, but not before Matt can clock his smile widen and his cheeks turn a bit red for a brief moment. “Fucking cheeseball.”

“Actually, I take that back,” Matt teases. “You’re probably a quarter demon.”

“Shut up!” Danny cackles. “You are as bad as Jared; you’ve turned into a straight up bully.”

“In my defense, boys like you make it so easy,” Matt jokes, crossing his eyes and reclining his head into a double chin so Danny knows he’s kidding.

“Fuck all the way off,” Danny demands. “Also, I’ve watched you get made fun of or whatever so don't even try it.” Matt settles back into bed just as Danny adds, “It’s really gonna bum me out if you roll a fucking blunt right now.”

“You know what, you’re right,” Matt says. “I won’t smoke. Out of solidarity for your sad, sober fantasy you’re giving me.”

“I mean, you can if you really want,” Danny assures. “I think if you don’t smoke for a day your skin might break out or you’ll go into hot flashes.”

“Shut up!” Matt barks through his laughter. “I mean it, you’re as big of a pothead as I am. I could quit if I really wanted to.”

“Sure,” Danny replies teasingly. The two grin at each other for a moment, Danny then asking, “Why don’t we watch a movie? Isn’t there a way to share your screen?”

“I think so,” Matt tells. “Should we rent something?”

“I mean, we sure can if you want,” Danny answers. 

“Let’s do it,” Matt elects. He shares his screen and starts looking for options on one of his movie streaming apps. “I think I want to watch a scary movie.”

Danny pouts, whining, “Aw, no I can’t watch them by myself I’ll cry. I’m a little bitch when it comes to spooky shit.”

“I’m right here,” Matt reassures. Danny cracks a grin at that. “If you think you feel tears coming or you start peeing yourself we can switch to a comedy.”

Danny laughs. “Suck my whole dick, Matty.”

“Would if I could,” Matt replies mock sadly. “If you’re worried about your dad being a cunt, throw your earbuds in.”

“Honestly, good idea,” Danny replies, doing just that. “Now I can talk dirty,” he teases sultrily so close to the microphone that his voice is almost distorted. 

“Ooh, you better,” Matt answers, not knowing if Danny will actually follow through but damn willing to take the shot.

Danny smirks, then telling shortly, “Take your pants off.” As he hears Matt’s clothing rustle immediately, he scolds, “Show me. Turn off your screen sharing.”

He grins as Matt obeys quietly, the camera shifting to show the lap of his skinny jeans just as they’re being pushed down his thighs. Danny can already see Matt’s erection straining against the thin fabric of his striped blue briefs, and his own member gives a happy twitch at that. “Undies, too.” Watching and unconsciously chewing on his bottom lip, Danny adjusts his camera to show the lap of his pants, his boner obvious and growing against his sweatpants. He starts to palm himself just as Matt has stripped nude from the waist down. Matt begins to stroke himself, teasing himself by starting slow and sparingly and then gradually increasing his pace.

“Move your hand; you’re covering him too much,” Danny whines.

Matt rolls his eyes hard, nevertheless adjusting his grip. “Like that?”

Danny bobs his head. “Now bring the camera down… down, further down damn it! Okay that's perfect. Spread your legs a bit more? Beautiful. Okay, now show me your asshole.”

Matt cackles, immediately panning the camera back to its original position at eye level with his cock. “You are disgusting!” 

“Shut up, so are you nasty boy,” Danny retorts. He licks his palm before returning to his work, his toes curling as he hums with pleasure. “I wish you were here to fuck me. I’m a sex god, but this right hand just isn’t doing it for me.”

Matt wordlessly pulls his shirt off as he adjusts the camera to boast this fact. Then, he props his hips up as Danny had asked, revealing more of himself than he’s used to (especially in the bottom right corner of the screen) but assuring himself it’s sexy. 

“You’re a saint,” Danny gushes, licking his other hand and bringing it to his nipple. His head falls back, and he groans, “Fuck, I’m almost there.”

Matt pokes a few stray fingers into his mouth before slipping them between his thighs and pressing them inside himself. Twirling them as his eyes roll back with ecstasy, he manages to murmur, “Something I can do to help?”

Danny shrugs, screwing his eyes shut and biting his lower lip as he quickens his pace. “Talk dirty?”

“What…. what do I say?” Matt stammers.

“M-m-make something up,” Danny replies, fumbling the first word as his hips stutter in sync with his strokes.

“Um… if I were there, I’d be grabbing your ass right now… and sucking on your chest,” Matt says, feeling ridiculous the entire time.

Danny bobs his head, his hand that had been teasing his nipple drifting between his thighs. “I want you inside me. I want you to leave scratches on my hips and I want to come so hard I forget my name.”

Matt’s third finger greets his ass as he reaches his maximum handjob speed, and he can feel an orgasm bubbling low in his stomach. “I want to fuck you so hard. I want to slap your ass and watch it shake. Your throat would look better with my hand around it.”

“Fuck, god fucking…. ahh,” Danny whines, finally coming. Matt follows soon after, and Matt settles for choosing a movie again as both quietly clean themselves, Danny with baby wipes and Matt with a dirty t shirt. They watch the movie, giggling and chatting throughout, and they end up falling asleep with the FaceTime still running. Danny ends up waking up briefly past 3 am, but when he sees his boyfriend sleeping soundly, his eyes soft and heavy as little snores rumble from his chest, he smiles and doesn’t close the call, just plugging in his charger before falling back asleep.


	37. Chapter 37

That following Monday, Danny and Matt leave from the same Lent household. Danny has elected to sleep with Matt for the past few nights; his dad still hadn’t left and things were only getting worse. By the third or so day with his dad home, Danny felt that his spirit was completely broken. He was anxious and sad, and on top of that, felt empty and insecure with everything he did. He figured he better get out before it got worse. Matt was happy to have him and never complained; he slept better with Danny in his bed and he didn’t mind sharing a shower every now and then. 

 

They strode outside to meet Brian on the porch steps. Brian looks up from his phone and, seeing the two, wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. “Were you two stuck to the bedsheets this morning?”

 

As Danny laughs so hard he snorts, Matt merely rolls his eyes, telling , “One, Brian, you are absolutely disgusting. Two, it’s not what you think.”

 

“What do you mean?” Brian asks.

 

Matt looks to Danny expectantly, whose cheeks puff out as he exhales sharply, then replying, “My piece of shit of a father is in town and instead of crashing at a fleabag motel he chose our house.”

 

“Honestly, I didn’t know you had a dad,” Brian admits. 

 

“Wait, seriously?” Danny asks.

 

Brian bobs his head, making Danny’s eyes triple in size has he says, “My dad’s dead, so I assume the worst.”

 

Matt giggles at Danny’s mortified reaction, swinging an arm around his hip as he pulls him closer, assuring, “Brian’s dad has been dead. It’s his favorite thing to joke about.”

 

“It’s got me sympathy head before,” Brian tells, turning to knock on his boyfriend’s door.

 

Danny cringes, his neck retracting as he hears this. “Oh my god. All this time I thought it was Matt’s Virgo ass but you are a fucking pig, Firkus.”

 

Brian nearly flips him off over his shoulder, knocking lightly on Bryan’s door. Bryan answers, wearing a dark pullover sweater with a yellow flannel underneath and a matching yellow beanie. Brian dramatically picks him up, clasping his hands beneath the backs of the smaller teen’s knees as he leans back. “You look so freaking cute! If this is your fall fashion I don’t want winter coming ever.”

 

They rejoin Matt and Danny, Brian lacing his fingers with Bryan’s and planting a peck on his cheek. “How’d you sleep?”

 

Bryan looks at him incredulously, the dark circles under his eyes almost more apparent. “What’s that, again?”

 

“If you have trouble sleeping, just invite Brian over,” Danny suggests. He pulls from Matt, only to slide behind him and wrap both of his arms around him in a hug. He presses his chin to Matt’s shoulder, almost having to creep on his tippy toes just to reach. 

I’m 

“Ha, that’s a laugh,” Brian responds flatly. “My grandparents would never. I’m not even allowed to have my door closed when Bryan’s over let alone have him stay the night.”

 

Matt’s eyes flutter. “They know you’re gay?”

 

Brian scoffs, then shaking his head rapidly. “No, god no. They just have their suspicions that's for sure. Matt, I think you are  the only boy they’ll let spend the night.” He looks to Bryan, then teasing, “Which is weird because you’re way hotter.”

 

Bryan wheeze laughs, shoving his boyfriend  away and crying, “Get away, you cunt!”

 

As they approach the school, Danny looks to Brian, offering, “Wanna cigarette break before class?” 

 

Bryan groans. “You read my mind.”

 

Before the pair can saunter off behind the building, Matt grabs Danny by the arm, asking, “I thought you quit.”

 

Danny snatches his arm back, replying sharply, “Don’t worry, mom, it’s just one. No need to nag.” When he sees Matt pout, he immediately feels guilty, taking his hand briefly and giving a squeeze as he reassures. “I’m sorry, baby, I’ve had a bad weekend and I’m very on edge.”

 

“I know,” Matt responds. He smiles at Danny to let him know that everything is okay. “I’ll see you in a bit. Hurry back.”

 

“Sure thing,” Danny chirps. “By the way, can we stop at my house after school so I can grab some things? Something tells me I’m going to be at your place for a while.”

 

“Of course,” Matt answers.

 

“Nor-gay-a, let’s go!” Bryan calls, waving Danny over. 

 

“You better get going,” Matt tells with a smile. He watches as Danny leaves, then retreating inside the building to sit in his class for a few minutes before Danny and Bryan strut in later. Danny sits behind Matt per usual. Matt catches a waft of his boyfriend as he passes, then crinkling his nose as he tells, “Danny, you reek. You better use cologne or something.”

 

Danny merely shrugs. “I don’t really care. It’s not like I smell like weed.”

 

“Oh, so you’re a burnout now?” Matt asks, half-joking. When Danny frowns and his eyes get all big, he assures, “I’m just teasing, honey.”

 

Danny sighs. “I know. I’ve just been in my feelings; I can’t help it.”

 

Matt shrugs, admonishing, “What you need is stress relief, something to take your mind off of things. So, I think that you should get dicked down.” Remembering that it’s been a while since Matt bottomed, he tells, “Or vice versa.”

 

Danny cracks a grin at that, countering, “Or both.”

 

“Goddamn, I knew I dated you for a reason,” Matt chuckles. 

 

The bell rings and Danng nods towards the front of the room, whispering, “Better turn around before he crawls inside of you.”

 

Matt does just that, but not without making a goofy face at Danny beforehand. He slowly turns, and he’s not even three minutes into the lecture when he feels the tip of Danny’s toe poke at his calf. Stifling a sigh, he peeks back, seeing Danny holding his phone beneath his desk. Danny gestures towards it, Matt taking the hint right away. Checking his messages, he sees Danny has sent him a photo of himself wearing a white thong, the head of his cock hanging over the waistband of the skimpy panties as precum leaks onto his fingers. Matt smirks, feeling himself stiffen in his pants. He crosses his legs, texting back, “When did you take that?”

 

Danny replies immediately. “Days ago. Gotta think ahead.”

 

“Was definitely worth it. So hot that I might have to go to the bathroom soon, but not right now because I have a problem,” Matt types.

 

“The solution is my mouth,” Danny texts back.

 

Matt scoffs under his breath. “Yeah right, horndog. Wait till after school.”


	38. Chapter 38

It’s a Friday night, and Danny and Matt are in Danny’s room enjoying their favorite pastime. Whenever Danny gets a little loud, Matt presses a cupped hand over his lips, muffling his moans and whining. Matt’s on top, the red lace of Danny’s thong shoved haphazardly to the side to allow for easier access. Both are dangerously close to the edge, Matt sucking on Danny’s stomach as he feels Danny’s fingers thread through his hair.

 

When Danny’s father barges into Danny’s room without knocking in his usual fashion, he wasn’t sure what he expected. So far, these practical raids have resulted in him catching him sleeping once, smoking a cigarette twice (to which he merely told him if he smokes his he’s dead), and masturbating at least three times. He never knows what to expect. Still, walking in to see Danny in bed, shirtless with a naked guy on top of him was a lot to take. 

 

“What the fuck?!” he roars, immediately charging towards the bed. 

 

Matt immediately jumps off of Danny and feels his dick go soft with fear as he clutches onto a throw pillow, tossing it over his privates and unconsciously backing against the wall. Danny’s dad storms over to him, and Matt can smell the bourbon on his breath as he gets too close and curses, “You keep away from my son, you fucking faggot. I should’ve known when I saw you, pretty boy.” He glowers at Matt, then suddenly striking him across the head. He twists a fist into his curly hair, forcing his head against the wall as Matt cries out. 

 

When Matt is stuck there like that, he gets so close that Matt can see every stain on his yellowed teeth, every whisker on his weathered face. He leans in close and snarls, just quiet enough for Matt to hear, “I know a fag when I see one. I bet you like taking cock just as much as you like getting it wet.” As he says this, he presses his knee against the throw pillow and pushes his weight into it, making Matt whimper and cry out again as his eyes begin to water.

 

Danny leaps from his place on the bed, where he had been sitting in stunned silence. He struggles into his pants just as his dad eyes Matt’s shiner, then deliberately pressing a knuckle into it as Matt yelps and whines in protest. Danny sprints over, shouting, “Stop! You’re hurting him!” As Matt continues to whine, the first tear making its way down his face, Danny balls his fist and hits his dad as hard as he can. In the ear, that is; in the heat of that distressful moment he missed.

 

Danny’s dad still recoils, releasing Matt, who gives a sigh of relief and places a hand over his aching crotch. Meanwhile, Danny’s father spits, “Motherfucker! You hit me in the ear!” He clutches onto the side of his head as he staggers towards Danny, slapping him once hard across the face. Danny immediately crumbles to the ground, his hand cupping his cheek which is stinging red. He gets down into Danny’s space, telling, “By the way, sissy, that was a pretty lousy hook. Maybe I should call you Danielle.” He grabs the bundle of Matt’s clothing from the ground in one hand, tossing them at him and barking, “You. Get the fuck out of my house and don’t ever come back. If I see your faggot ass around my son I’m going to have to take care of it myself like I did just now.” He glares at Matt, whose mouth is open in shock. He glances to Danny, waiting for him to interject, but Danny is just hugging his knees to his chest and rocking, his chin settled against his knees and his eyes glassy and far away, burning a hole into the wall. Matt bites his lip, using the pile of clothes to cover his ass as he walks out, not saying anything as Danny’s dad calls, “Walk away, pussy!” 

 

Matt dresses as quickly as he can in the living room. He does a mental scan of the room, searching for Danny’s mom, before recalling that she’s at her shift at work. He storms out, all but sprinting to his car before tossing himself down into the driver’s seat, locking the door, and screaming as loud as he can. His fists rain down on the steering wheel as his primal yelling dissolves into sobbing. Wiping his eyes, he takes off, still crying and shaking the entire drive home. 

 

When he gets home, he goes straight to his room without saying a word, ignoring his brother, who is lounging on the den couch and asks, “Matt, what’s wrong?” Matt slams his door behind him, then flinging himself onto the bed and crying. He does that for so long that he doesn’t know how much time has passed, but he doesn’t feel any better. Checking his phone, he’s disappointed to see that Danny hasn’t texted him. Tonguing the inside of his cheek, he considers sending a message. He must rewrite it about twenty times before sending simply: Danny, let’s talk. I love you. He doesn’t get a response for over fifteen excruciating minutes, although he can see that Danny read it right away. Finally, a mere: don’t talk to me anymore Matt. Don’t do anything stupid okay don’t get hurt. Right away, Matt tries to reply: Danny what the fuck are you kidding me. Only, it doesn’t send, and he must try sending it again two or three times before realizing his number is blocked.

 

As the night crawls forward, it doesn’t get any better. He doesn’t eat, doesn’t shower, doesn’t do anything but lay in bed, wallowing and occasionally self-medicating with a couple blunts. He doesn’t sleep much, it’s hard to do it not only without Danny there, but fully knowing that he may never be there again. He decides early on that he’s not going to school the following morning. On the plus side, he literally looks like hell, so it will be easier than ever to convince his mom that he’s too ill to attend class.


	39. Chapter 39

As Danny is walking down the familiar street, dwindling cigarette in hand, he hardly pays attention to the car on the nearby road running at a creeping, slow pace behind him. Earbuds blasting as they usually are, he also doesn’t pay any attention when the car stops entirely, the driver getting out and rushing behind him. He doesn’t even think of this happening until the random person has twisted his arm behind his back as he pins him against a cement wall. Danny groans, his earbuds falling free as he struggles to squirm against the man, but it’s no use; he’s stuck in place. “What? What’s going on?”

 

Danny recognizes the voice immediately as it tells lowly, “Remember me?” It’s Matt’s brother, his older sibling with the same voice and inflection, same upbringing, and same boyish looks that had lured Danny in like a housefly to a heaping vat of honey. 

 

“What do you want?” Danny asks, his tone pinched as he desperately tries to stretch his aching arm to no avail.    
  


“You bailed,” Jared accuses. It takes Danny a moment to decipher what he’s saying before he realizes that Jared must be talking about his floundering relationship with Matt. “I don’t know how you haven’t gotten this by now, but if you mess with Matt, you mess with me. So what the fuck is going on fuckboy?”

 

“I’m not,” Danny whines, tilting his hips as he again fruitlessly tries to free his arm. “You don’t understand. It’s not him, it’s…” Danny’s voice hitches as he feels Jared reach for the waistband of his pants. “Stop! Jesus fucking christ get off of me!”

 

‘You better start talking,” Jared warns, grasping onto a fistful of Danny’s underwear, the leopard print briefs that Matt had gotten for him, halfway as a joke. “I’d hate to jam these gay little briefs up your ass all because you wouldn’t say something.”

 

Danny stammers, “I’m t-talking, just give me one second!” He sighs, then continuing, “Listen, it’s not Matt’s fault that we aren’t talking right now. But it’s not my fault either, okay? I had some shit go down that I wasn’t expecting and I…” Danny swallows a lump, forcing it back down his throat before continuing, “I don’t really know what happened, I guess I panicked. There was just so much happening all at once and… and I needed things to just slow down. I didn’t want to push him away, but I couldn’t have him watch as my fucking life falls apart. I didn’t want him to see me at my worst.” He shrugs, shaking his head as he adds defeatedly, “I guess I just kind of hoped I could hide my shitty family life from him. But your past has a way of biting you in the ass, huh?” 

Suddenly, Danny feels himself being released, and he gratefully shoves his underwear back into his pants. He looks to Jared, who just shrugs his shoulders and suggests, “Look, maybe you should like talk to him. He’s been really down lately and I hate seeing him like that.” He slaps Danny on the back, adding, “Sorry about all that, by the way. Matt didn’t ask me to harass you; I just wanted to help.”

“You could have… talked to me,” Danny replies. “Like, one on one, man to man.”

 

Jared smiles sheepishly, rolling his eyes as his hands habitually cram into his pockets. “Hey, maybe I’ll give that a shot next time.” He starts to leave, calling over his shoulder, “Call him, soon, Danny.”

 

As he continues his walk home, Danny pulls his cellphone from his pocket. He goes to his blocked numbers list, and he has to admit, it puts a rock in his stomach seeing Matt’s number in the few people he’s blocked. He contemplates calling, but first merely unblocks him instead. Then, even though he opens their messages and stares vacantly at the screen for a few moments, he sighs, closing out of it. Instead, he finds Brian’s number and calls him. 

 

“You’re alive?” Brian asks sarcastically. 

 

“Hardly,” Danny answers, with just as much bitterness that Brian had thrown at him. “Listen, have you seen Matt lately?”

 

Danny recoils; suddenly there’s loud crunching on the other line. “Did you call me just to talk about Matt?”

 

Danny rolls his eyes. “Brian, fucking throw me a bone. How is he? Is he doing okay?”

 

“Well,  _ Daniel, _ ” Brian begins, his chewing even louder now. “Considering the love of his life fucking threw him away and blocked his number… he’s not doing too great. I’m not going to lie to you.” 

 

“Do you think he’d want to talk to me again?” Danny asks, not prepared for how whiny and pathetic his voice came out as he asked this. 

 

“I hate to fucking tell you this,” Brian begins. Danny feels as though someone had sapped all the air from his lungs as he waits to hear what his friend is about to say next. “But he would cry because he’d be so goddamn happy. That fucking idiot loves you. He’s pissed, don’t get me wrong, but he would love a phone call or even a text from you. Now, I’m not sure if he’s ready to admit that, but it’s true.”   
  


Danny breathes a sigh of relief. “Thank God.”

 

“Yeah. Luckily for you, Matt got a fatality from subzero because he doesn’t have a fucking spine these days. Call the dumbass. Even better, go to his house and talk to him. He really needs you, Danny. I don’t think it’d be out of line for me to guess that you guys both probably need each other,” Brian tells. 

 

“Thanks, Brian,” Danny responds. “Even though you’re an asshole.”

 

“Fuck you, too,” Brian replies calmly. “I gotta go.” With that, he hangs up. 

 

Danny stands there for a few moments before continuing on his path home. As he comes towards his house, he starts to wonder whether he should walk the few extra blocks to get to Matt’s door. It would probably be better to text first. As he passes over his own home, he pulls his phone out, texting Matt, “Hey, I’m really sorry about how everything went down. I’m on my way over right now. I’m ready to talk things out if you are.” He takes a few more steps, then adding, “I would hate to lose you. I still love you, Matthew.” He hasn’t taken more than a few steps when he gets Matt’s response, the short, but concise message that he must have pounded out on his keyboard in mere seconds. 

 

“I’m ready to talk. I love you too, baby. I missed you so much. I’m not going anywhere.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> super late update! Been busy with classes but I want to keep this story going so expect more updates


	40. Chapter 40

When Danny knocks on Matt’s door, he braces himself to see his boyfriend again after what felt like so much time apart. Only, Jared is the one who lets him in, grinning as he holds out his hand for Danny to slap. “I knew you’d fucking come around. Matt’s in his room.” Danny steps past him with a grin, and he’s only gone a few feet when he hears Jared add, “Oh, yeah, Danny?”

 

Danny looks back over his shoulder to see Jared smirk. “Good luck.”

 

Danny merely grins hastily before continuing his walk down the familiar hallway, all the way to Matt’s bedroom door. The door is closed, as it always is, not just when Danny is over. Danny knocks a couple of times and waits. When there is no reply, he starts to knock again, only to have the door swing open mid-knock. Matt is standing there, his hair disheveled and a little greasy. He’s wearing a faded, baggy t-shirt and pajama pants. He looks as though he’d either been crying or is extremely tired, and Danny doesn’t like that one bit. He has a thin trace of a five o’clock shadow stippling his jaw, which only looks more pronounced with the whiskers dotting his chin. “Hey.” His voice is calm and smooth. 

 

“Hey,” Danny breathes, trying to match the even tone that Matt had set. “Can I come in?”

 

Matt shakes his head, smiling as he counters, “Do you really have to ask?” He steps back, holding the door open to allow Danny to pass through. Danny mumbles a thanks as Matt closes the door behind him, then going to sit on his perpetually made bed and patting the open space next to him. Danny gratefully sinks down onto the soft comforter, and for the first time he has to repress the urge to lean his head on Matt’s taller, broader shoulders. The whole room smells so wonderfully like a boyfriend, and it’s comforting yet bittersweet at the same time.

 

“You look cute with facial hair,” Danny mumbles with a grin. “I’m not used to seeing you with any.”   
  


Matt chuckles at that. He looks at Danny, asking, “Do I look different?”

Danny bobs his head, elaborating, “Not in a bad way, though. You look a little older.”

 

The two sit there for a moment before Matt finally asks the vital question. “So, what happened to us?”

 

“Not us, for one,” Danny corrects. When Matt gives him a quizzical look, Danny shrugs, his head swaying from side to side as he explains, “It wasn’t anything we did. My dad is kind of like a firestorm; he tears down everything in his path and leaves nothing but ash. You saw how difficult he is. I think it was just all too much for me.”

 

“You know I don’t care where you came from,” Matt responds, somewhat sadly. “I love you; I would never judge you for anything, especially for something you can’t help.”

“I know, but…” Danny pushes back that persistent clot in his chest as he continues, “I just knew he was going to bring out the worst in me. I didn’t want to drag you into that mess because it didn’t have anything to do with you. I don’t want you to have to fucking stand up to my dad or sneak around him or anything like that.” Danny peers at Matt, to see those clear, hooded blue eyes just gazing into his own. “Besides, it’s not like my dad is ever around for that long, anyways. I figured he’d bounce again, so I guess I thought I could salvage our relationship by putting it on hold and then coming back to it.”

 

Matt nods, unconsciously chewing on his lower lip thoughtfully. “I do get where you were coming from. I understand that you just wanted to spare me and our relationship but…” Matt looks at him, and he almost seems to bite back a voice crack as he tells gently, “You know I would do anything for you, Danny. I hated not having you here. I just wish you would have talked to me instead of shutting me out like that.”

 

“I know; that was wrong,” Danny admits. “And I’m sorry. I definitely could have handled it better. I just think I was in such a bad place that I totally lost sight of myself… I didn’t know what to do.” Danny, without thinking, takes Matt’s hand in his own, tracing his thumb over the knuckle of Matt’s forefinger. “But now I know what I want. I want you. I hope you can forgive me and we can act like this never happened. I was really happy with where we were, and I can’t wait to get back to that if you’ll let me.”

 

Matt looks at him, his expression as hard to read as ever with his aloof, cool (albeit somewhat sedated depending on who you ask) demeanor like a thick shell around him. Finally, he takes a breath, his chest rising shallowly with the intake of air. He squeezes Danny’s hand, telling, “You’re stupid to think I wouldn’t forgive you. It’s not like I even have a choice, Danny.” He looks at Danny, whose hazel eyes are as wide and sappy as always. “I fucking love you. I never want to hurt you, and if you’d like it, I would love to spend forever with you.” 

 

Danny smiles ear to ear. “I don’t just like that idea; I love it.” The two exchange a tender stare, and with that, Danny can’t take it anymore, tackling his boyfriend in a tight hug and smothering him in kisses. Between each peck, he cries out, “I… missed… you… so… badly.” 

 

Matt’s arms wrap around Danny’s waist, one hooking around his hip to pull him closer as another snakes up the tail of his shirt to rub circles into his back. He almost feels like he could cry, but he doesn’t want to because he knows that Danny wouldn’t stand a chance. Instead, he just focuses on how fast his heart is beating and how beautiful Danny looks and how good it feels to have him back. As he plants a kiss on his lips, Danny’s fingers threading into Matt’s shaggy hair, Matt thinks to himself that maybe he never lost him in the first place. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter came sooner than expected! let me know what you think


	41. Chapter 41

Danny and Matt are sitting on top of Danny’s comforter, both propped up against the pillows as the television plays faintly in the background. They’re making out, Danny’s hand running up the front of Matt’s shirt as Matt is wrist deep down the lap of Danny’s pants. He first teases Danny as his firming cock strains against his briefs, feeling the first hints of precum wet the crotch of his underwear before he slips his hand through the slot, finally wrapping his fingers around the base of the shaft. Danny whimpers a little into Matt’s mouth when his fingertip brushes briefly against the frenulum, and Matt can’t help but smirk as he feels his boyfriend’s hips already stuttering with pleasure. Nothing makes you appreciate sex like a dry spell. 

 

Matt kisses Danny harshly on the neck, his teeth dragging down the glistening, dampened skin in a line. A trail of bruises manifests down the length of Danny’s neck, making the older boy’s breath hitch with the creation of each new mark. Matt frantically runs his thumb across the head as he bites a large bruise onto Danny’s collarbone, his breath hot and full against the tight flesh. Danny tosses his head back and whines, his hips bucking every few moments. “I’m close,” he tells, his voice pinched as Matt’s hand runs across the head before stroking the shaft several times. 

 

Hearing this, Matt’s other hand moves from its place against Danny’s chest to squeeze his hip tightly, then stretching around to slide down the seat of his pants. He grips the waistband of Danny’s white briefs and tugs on the fabric, raising the underwear against his boyfriend’s venus dimples and making his hips shift slightly with the force. Matt sucks on the base of Danny’s neck, then tracing up the skin with increasingly rough kisses before nibbling on his earlobe. Biting slightly on the skin and stretching the flesh with his lower teeth, Matt teases in a deep whisper, “Aw, so soon?” His thumb relentlessly pressures the frenulum as his hand pulls sharper on the waistband, Danny eventually groaning quietly through an orgasm that leaves his hips twitching. Matt brings him back down to earth, pressing kisses against his jaw as his other hand moves to rub his shoulders. 

 

Danny sets his head against Matt’s shoulder, sighing as he redoes his pants. He pecks Matt on the cheek, almost panting from the exertion of it all. “I forgot how good it feels to have someone else do that other than yourself.”

 

Matt grins, chuckling, “Tell me about it. You were dripping before I even touched you.”

 

Danny cackles, tossing his head back as he hits Matt’s arm. “Shut the fuck up! Yeah right.”

 

Then, hearing the front door slam, Danny visibly tenses as he straightens up in bed. He pulls his hand from Matt’s and moves away from him as he strains to hear.

 

“Who is that?” Matt asks.

 

Danny shrugs. “Pretty sure moms is still at work.” He sits there for a minute, chewing on his bottom lip thoughtfully. Suddenly, his eyes go wide with panic as he mumbles, “Fuck, this better not…”

 

He doesn’t get to finish that sentence as his father storms in the room unannounced. He’s wavering and smells like alcohol and cigarettes, even from where the two boys are sitting. His dad sees Matt and his face is turning red already. “What the fuck is he doing here? Why is the faggot back?” He glares at Danny, then stepping closer and slugging him hard in the arm. “You gonna answer me, stupid?” 

 

Matt can hear Danny mumble under his breath, “Dios mío, pendeja estupido feo.” He looks at his dad, shouting back, “We got paired together for science, dad. Fucking climb off my dick, alright?”

 

Matt’s eyes swell at the sharpness of Danny’s words. He’s rarely seen his boyfriend so angry. Meanwhile, Danny’s father stumbles closer and tells Danny seethingly, “You finally grow a pair? You think you’re tough, talking to me like that?” When Danny doesn’t answer, his dad narrows his eyes and squeezes the back of his son’s neck tightly with his nails, making Danny cry out. Danny’s pulled out of bed, struggling to stay on his feet as his dad’s grip tightens. His dad gets close, whispering, “And what the fuck are those bruises from, huh? The vacuum?” 

 

Danny’s eyes start to water as his knees threaten to give out. All Matt can do is watch in sheer horror. He wants to look away, but he just can’t. Besides, someone has to keep an eye on Danny and his father is definitely not the one to do so.

 

He grabs a fistful of Danny’s hair and pulls sharply, making Danny’s voice raise as he yelps. “You got your shirt off and for what, because you’re hot?”

 

Danny’s torso starts to fold as his dad pushes even harder on his neck, making his olive skin go to a dark reddish purple. His dad tells, louder this time, “You know what will happen when your punk ass lands in jail?” He grabs a hold of Danny’s white waistband, slowly pulling up on the material. “Dudes are gonna see your fucking tighty whities hanging out and that’s gonna be an invitation for a fucking. And if you don’t want it?” He begins pulling sharply, yanking on the briefs a few times before letting them go with a snap. “They’ll fucking take it anyways.” He shoves Danny away in disgust, watching as his son starts to cry, his face crimson and hot. “Hey, big tough guy? Let’s try this again when your cock is too big to wear that kid shit.” He moves towards the bed, jabbing a finger towards Matt, “And you…”

 

Matt scrambles backwards against the sheets, watching as he gets closer before seeing him swiftly turn in shock. Danny had punched him in the back of the head, and he’s shaking his throbbing hand as he stares his dad down. As his dad lunges for Danny, Matt withdraws his taser from his pocket and sparks it up against the large man’s broad back. He watches him convulse and drop to the ground, and tossing their clothing to Danny, he tells, “Let’s fucking hit it.”

 

Danny merely hands the clothes back, and all Matt can do is gaze in awe as Danny slowly approaches his father, then sharply kicking him in the ribs repeatedly. As he continues to beat the man on the ground, he screams so loudly the neighbors could catch it, “Worthless… fucking piece of shit! Fuck you! Fucking… go away!  Sorry son of a bitch! Go sit in traffic… you fuck!” By the time he’s finished yelling, Matt is pulling Danny away with both hands and all of his strength as his boyfriend is crying hysterically and violently shaking, having drawn blood from kicking his father in the jaw. Matt drags him to the car where he drives them to Brian’s house, Danny wordlessly sobbing into the sleeve of his sweater the entire way there. 

 


	42. Chapter 42

Matt knocks rapidly on Brian’s front door, not ceasing until his best friend himself answers. He would never try that if Brian’s grandparents were home, but he could tell both by the absence of their station wagon and the addition of a rusted silver Kia that they must be gone. It’s the first time Matt’s ever seen Bryan’s car, and both the collection of seemingly thrifted dolls in the back window as well as the license plate reading “realwtch” made sense. Brian finally answers, wearing nothing but a baggy t-shirt and blue gingham boxers. He’s glaring at Matt with his arms crossed, not even trying to hide the erection clearly pushing against the fly of his underwear. “This better be good, Matthew.”

 

Matt struggles to tear his eyes away, murmuring, “Um… uh damn sorry… I didn’t mean to interrupt…”

 

Brian cocks his head. “It’s past eight o’clock on a school night; what else would I be doing?”

 

Repressing an eye roll, Matt replies, “Look, I’m sorry. You know I wouldn’t bother you if it wasn’t important.”

 

Sighing, Brian tells, “Alright, what’s up?”

 

Matt steps to the side, revealing Danny’s shuddering frame behind him. Still shaking from all that had happened, he has his eyes buried in his sleeve and refuses to look up. Eyeliner has dripped down his skin, staining his cheeks with long, dark runs. His shoulders are quaking as he makes no noise, seemingly still crying. When Matt places a comforting, firm hand on his shoulder, he doesn’t even seem to react.

 

Brian sighs, now crossing his legs as he steps back, allowing for the two to step in. Matt has to practically drag his boyfriend over the threshold, one hand wrapped around his waist. Matt presses his nose to Danny’s cheek, whispering, “Are you okay? Can you talk to me, babe?” When Danny doesn’t answer, he presses a soft, brief kiss against his jaw. “Please, Danny?”

 

Danny looks at him, his eyes swollen with tears and just sore to look at. He rolls his eyes back into his head as he trills his lips. He shrugs, telling, “Matt saw what happened.” He looks to Brian, asking, “Want filled in?”

 

Brian nods vehemently, responding, “Please.” He then darts his eyes back towards his bedroom door, telling, “Wait.” With that, he clambers off, stepping into his room briefly. When he returns, he’s wearing pajama pants and has a shirtless Bryan in tow, dressed scantily in a pair of joggers.

 

“Hey, babes,” Bryan greets, hugging both Matt and Danny. He takes Danny’s face in both his hands, frowning as he tells, “Aw, you look terrible sweetie.”

 

“Thanks for that,” Danny says, his voice compressed with either of Bryan’s hands pressing against his cheeks.

 

“He means you look upset,” Matt tells, squeezing Danny’s hand reassuringly.

 

Bryan and his boyfriend make themselves comfortable on the couch. Brian gestures to the recliner wordlessly, so Matt takes ahold of Danny’s hand and walks the two over, sitting down first and helping Danny ease onto his lap. Matt wraps his arms around Danny’s waist, clasping his hands over his lap and pressing his forehead against his narrow shoulders after softly pecking the nape of his neck. Danny sighs, telling, “So, Matt and I were in my room hooking up, and like right after, we heard my dad walk in. Like the fucking tool he is, he barged right in and he fucking reeked and was drunk. He was immediately all pissy since Matt was back because of the whole incident last time, so I lied about us being partnered for science.”

 

“Christ you’re bad liar,” Brian mutters.

 

“Isn’t that a good thing?” Matt counters, one hand remaining around Danny’s waist and another wrapping around his upper stomach and chest. A few of his fingers absently caress Danny’s chest before grasping gently onto the fabric of his shirt. 

 

Danny rolls his eyes. “Whatever. Anyways, he was like instigating a fight, asking if I’m a tough guy and all that. I didn’t answer, and he started grabbing me by the back of my neck and squeezing super hard with his nails. It hurt like a bitch, so badly that it pulled me out of bed. I guess he knew I was lying because I didn’t have a shirt on.”

 

“He clocked your hickeys,” Matt reminds.

 

A mild blush rising in his cheek, Danny bites on his upper lip. “So… yeah, he just kept roughhousing with me and saying how I’ll end up in prison and…. how guys will treat someone like me in there. He fucking pulled on my underwear because he knows I hate it; he used to do it when I was little.”

 

“You got a fucked up family,” Brian murmurs. “Um, no offense, I mean.”

 

“None taken. Accurate sentence if you ask me,” Danny replies.

“So… what now?” Bryan asks. “Like, what are you gonna do?’

 

Danny shrugs defeatedly. “There’s not really anything I can do. My mom has still been keeping him around for whatever reason, don’t ask me why. I think she’s just afraid to tell him to fucking hit it.”

 

“But doesn’t she know how bad he treats you?” Matt asks. He’s rubbing circles against Danny’s chest and shoulder, his nails grazing against the thin fabric of his shirt. 

 

“No, not the full extent,” Danny replies. “She knows he’s a fucking scumbag, and she tries to stick up for me when he decides to start shit but… he’s never hit me or anything, not in front of her. My mom’s crazy; he wouldn’t fucking dare.”

 

“Well, then what’s next? Besides telling your mom?” Brian asks, his arms crossed as he chews worriedly on his thumbnail. Bryan sees this and pulls his finger from his mouth, kissing the back of his hand before interlacing their fingers. Brian, still looking concerned for Danny, lets a small smile creep over his face as he rests his head on the shorter teen’s shoulder. 

 

“Nothing. He’s bigger than me, he’s stronger than me, and he’s meaner than me,” Danny tells. “I just have to hope he decides to skip town again soon. I know he will. It’s a matter of when, not if.” 

 

Matt hugs Danny tightly, both of his arms looping around his small frame and meeting at his lap. He kisses Danny’s neck, telling, “You can stay with me if you need to. You know I don’t mind.”

 

“I know,” Danny mumbles. He hugs Matt back before pushing his arms away, standing up. “We better get going. Thanks for listening to me, guys.” 

 

“Hey, it’s no problem,” Brian assures, standing as well. Danny offers his hand to Matt and helps pull him to his feet. “Are you feeling better?”

 

Danny shakes his head. “A bit, but still not like myself.”

 

“I think I know how to cheer you up,” Brian offers, pacing over to the two slowly. 

 

“What?” Danny says. 

  
Brian suddenly darts behind Matt, forcing his friend into a full nelson. At first, he can’t overpower him, but with a swift knee to the back of Matt’s leg, Matt is more worried about staying standing than being pushed into the hold, and he submits. His arms out at his sides, he groans. “Fucking get off me!”

 

“You like it when we pick on Matt, don’t you?” Brian asks. “It’s funny isn’t it.”

Matt is cursing up a storm as Brian motions for his boyfriend to come over, which he does at his rapid pace. “What do you want?”

 

Brian bites his lower lip as if he were thinking very hard, holding Matt still as his friend struggles uselessly against him. “I think you should pull his pants down.” 

 

“Firkus, I’m going to fucking murder you,” Matt threatens. “I know where you live. I’ll come in and stab you, and I’ll fucking draw dicks on your walls with the blood!”

 

Bryan makes a hesitant face, but Brian merely nods, assuring, “Matty’s all talk. He’s a big baby; he couldn’t fight anyone let alone stab them.” 

Bryan leaves his spot next to Danny, moving towards Matt, who keeps trying to kick him as he gets ahold of the waistband of his jeans and starts gradually sliding them down his thighs. Matt’s face is crimson, and it’s not until his pants have reached his knees that Bryan steps back, reclaiming his place next to Danny as the two giggle at Matt’s expense. 

 

“I fucking hate you guys,” Matt whines, his face growing even redder. 

 

“No wonder you made fun of me for dressing up as Batman. I never knew you were such a Flash fanatic,” Danny teases, gesturing to Matt’s red Marvel briefs.

 

“Piss off,” Matt grumbles, fighting against his friend to no avail. 

 

“Alright, I think he’s had enough,” Brian dismisses, finally releasing Matt, who immediately stumbles forward and brings his pants back up. He then turns, causing Brian to screech and start running as he chases after him, nearly bringing down the coffee table as the two teens take a sharp turn down the hall. 

 

“You’re a dead fucking man!” Matt yells. 

 

Bryan and Danny hear the door slam, and Matt finally returns, ambling slowly over to the two, his face still flushed. Bryan chuckles, asking, “What, he outran you?”

 

“Barely,” Matt pants, pushing his bangs back from his forehead. His arm slings around Danny’s waist as Danny grabs him by the shirt collar, pulling him close. First, Matt shies away, but Danny continues to grin at him until he resigns and returns the kiss Danny presses to his lips. “We’re heading out. Use plenty of teeth, Bryan. For me.”

 

“I’ll see what I can do,” Bryan responds jokingly, waving as the two leave. 


	43. Chapter 43

As Matt’s car rumbles past Danny’s house, Danny grabs Matt’s wrist, telling abruptly, “Wait, pull over.”

 

Matt does so wordlessly, then turning to Danny asking, “What’s up?”

 

Danny peers out from his seat towards his house. “My dad’s car is gone.”

 

“Think he took off?” 

 

Danny looks back at Matt, telling, “There’s only one way to find out.”

 

The two boys walk slowly towards the home, Matt leading as he holds his boyfriend’s trembling hand. Matt brings his hand to his lips, pecking his knuckles and telling, “You can do this.”

 

Matt opens the door, stepping in and looking around quietly. He practically has to drag Danny over the threshold. “I don’t see anyone, Danny.”

 

Danny stumbles in beside him, and then rushes past him, Matt racing to keep up. Matt finally  meets Danny, who is standing in his mother’s bedroom, pushing through her closet. “His shit’s gone.” He then moves past Matt wordlessly, backtracking to the dining room as Matt follows. He opens the fridge, mumbling, “No booze.” He turns to Matt and smiles widely, telling, “He’s really fucking gone.” 

 

Matt grins back, hugging Danny and repeating, “He’s really fucking gone!” Matt picks up Danny and squeezes him tightly, then lowering him back to the ground. He kisses Danny, saying, “We should celebrate.” 

 

Danny frowns. “Booze is gone.”

 

“You got any flags?” Matt asks. 

 

Danny squints. “What are you talking about?”

 

“Reach into my back pocket,” Matt replies. “I’m holding.”

 

Danny grins, muttering, “You don’t have to tell me twice.” He drags his hand slowly around Matt’s waist, grabbing his ass before finally finding the pocket and retrieving a bag of weed. As soon as he feels the plastic bag, he knows what’s inside. “Ugh, you’re the best.”

 

The two are sharing a joint on Danny’s bedroom floor as music plays from his stereo. Danny has his head on Matt’s shoulder, and Matt’s arm is slung tightly around Danny’s waist. 

 

“You know what I want to do?” Danny asks suddenly.  

“What?” Matt says, smoke trailing from his mouth as he passes the stub of a joint back to Danny. 

 

Taking the final pull, Danny fights back a cough as he exhales, stamping the flame out on his bedpost as he tells, “You have to promise not to make fun of me.”

 

“When have I ever made fun of you?” Matt responds teasingly. 

 

“For real,” Danny pouts, and it’s not until Matt’s grin has faded and he looks at Danny with a small nod that he continues, “I’ve been practicing makeup. Can I give you a makeover?”

 

“Wow. I knew you were gay but I never pegged you as a faggot,” Matt teases, pushing Danny’s shoulder lightly. When Danny doesn’t even crack a grin, just stares him down with his big baby eyes and his pouting lips, Matt immediately stammers, “It-it was just a joke, baby. I love that you’re doing makeup.” He holds both of Danny’s hands in his own and wraps his arms around himself, grinning widely as he kisses him. “The only thing I would love more is for you to do my makeup.”

 

“I’m gonna beat your face right after I beat your ass,” Danny threatens, his lip hooked into a snarl. He giggles at Matt’s expression, pecking his cheek as he assures, “I’m just kidding. Let me go get my mom’s stuff.”

 

Matt pretends to muffle a gag noise dramatically. “You use your mom’s makeup?”

 

“Well, yeah,” Danny calls from the bathroom. He returns shortly after, carrying his mom’s flowery makeup case like a clutch and strutting. He stands in front of Matt, posing before turning and looking over his shoulder down at him.

 

“You are _such_ a fucking dork,” Matt chuckles. “Get down here, you big dummy.”

 

Danny sits cross legged in front of Matt, dumping foundation onto the back of his hand. “This stuff is going to be way too dark for your pale ass but… oh well.”

 

Matt scrunches his nose. “Then why use it?” He sits there for a moment, watching as Danny grabs a makeup sponge. “And I’m not pale; I’m fair skinned.”

 

“If your white ass doesn’t shut up,” Danny mumbles, dabbing the makeup onto the sponge and moving to apply it to Matt’s forehead. Matt recoils and Danny frowns at him.

 

“Will this stain my shirt?” Matt asks.

 

“Not if you don’t get any on it,” Danny replies, again moving to apply the makeup. Matt veers off to one side, again dodging the blender. Danny huffs, annoyed. 

 

Matt holds his hands out, telling, “Just give me one second.” He pulls his shirt over his head, followed by the black undershirt beneath. Setting them at his side, he announces, “Okay, I’m ready now.”

 

“You’re so cute,” Danny gushes, starting to finally dab the makeup onto Matt’s skin. “I wish I didn’t put this on you now that it’s about done. It covers up your little freckles.”

 

“Good,” Matt tells flatly, his eye twitching as Danny pats makeup beneath his eye and around the corner. “They’re ugly.”

 

Danny growls loudly, replying, “Shut up! They’re cute.”

 

“You’re cute,” Matt counters, smiling.

 

Danny replaces the blender, instead grabbing blush and a brush. He packs it full of the pigment, then pushing it across Matt’s cheeks. Matt giggles quietly, making Danny smile. “What, what is it?”

 

“That brush tickles,” Matt replies, still chuckling. “It’s so soft.”

 

Danny stops for a moment, kissing Matt briefly before finishing applying the blush. He puts a pop on the tip of Matt’s nose.

 

“You put it on your nose?” Matt asks in disbelief.

 

Setting aside the blush, Danny starts to root through the bag for eyeshadow. Not looking up, he replies, “Yeah, so what?”

 

“You want to look like you have rosacea? Are you making me cosplay as an alcoholic?” Matt laughs.

 

“Oh, shut up! It’s cute!” Finally picking up a palette, he tells, “Besides, you wouldn’t be cosplaying, Hemingway.”

 

“You want me to kick your ass? I’ll look great doing it,” Matt retorts. As Danny approaches his eye with the brush, Matt backs away, insisting, “I can’t have something near my eye.”

 

“Come on, don’t be a baby,” Danny says, trying and again missing.

 

“Stop it,” Matt snaps, jerking left and right as Danny keeps trying to put the eyeshadow on. “Just because you’re my boyfriend doesn’t mean I won’t kill you.”

 

Danny throws himself towards Matt, managing to pin him on his back with his body weight. Laughing triumphantly, he kisses him, then advising, “You might want to close your eyes now.”

 

“Danny don’t! Stop!” Matt squeaks, his eyes screwed shut as Danny hastily swipes the shadow over them. “Quit it! I’m not going to kill you, I’m going to break your legs and lock you in a basement! And I’m going to leave you there for years! And you’ll have to give birth to illegitimate children that you can raise… in the basement!”

 

“Does that basement have radon levels? I don’t think I can get pregnant. I don’t have a womb,” Danny says.

 

“You won’t have any balls either if you don’t get off of me!” Matt threatens. 

 

Danny finally backs off, and Matt snaps into a sitting position. Before Matt can keep yelling, Danny uses his phone’s front camera and holds it in front of Matt, telling, “See how beautiful you look?”

 

Matt stops in his tracks, gazing at his reflection. “That’s… that’s really me.”

 

“So would you stop whining?” Danny responds.

 

“You calling me a whiner?” Matt demands.

 

Grinning, Danny replies teasingly, “No, I’m calling you a bitch, you bitch.” He squeals as Matt immediately starts wrestling with him, the couple’s  arms locked as they press their heads against each other. Danny tries to bite Matt as his forearm pushes into his shoulder, whining, “Stop, that hurts.”

 

“Want to know what will hurt worse?” Matt asks. He manages to fall back, pulling Danny on top of him. One arm locks around his neck as another reaches around his waist, grasping for the waistband of his pants.

 

“Don’t!” Danny yelps, trying to squirm out of his grasp.

 

It’s no use, as Matt grabs ahold of his white underwear and pulls hard. Danny whines in protest, merely trying to claw at Matt’s torso as he tugs harder. 

 

“Stop,” Danny pleads. “Seriously, quit.”

 

Matt pulls sharply one more time before letting go, the underwear hitting the small of Danny’s back with a snap. He kisses Danny’s forehead before letting him go, ruffling his bangs affectionately. Danny hits him once on the thigh, making Matt wince as he clutches his leg, the muscle going asleep and throbbing. “Ow.”

 

“Serves you right,” Danny mutters, pushing his briefs back into his pants. “You’re lucky you didn’t mess your makeup up.”

 

“By the way, are you finished?” Matt asks.

 

“Well… no; I wanted to do mascara then some lipstick,” Danny shares.

 

“What’s mascara?” 

 

Rolling his eyes, Danny tells, “It goes on your eyelashes.”

 

“Fuck that, where’s the lipstick?” Matt replies.

 

Danny finally smiles, asking, “Well, what color do you want? Moms doesn’t have as many options as I’d like, but I usually do like a darker nude or burgundy.”

 

“Hooker red would be fun,” Matt suggests.

 

Danny picks up the tube, sighing, “It’ll look so good with your blue eyes.” He wipes it over Matt’s lips, ordering, “Rub your lips together.” Matt does as he’s told, and Danny orders again, “Now kiss me.” Again, Matt does as he’s told, smiling as the freshly painted lipstick transfers to Danny’s mouth.

 


	44. Chapter 44

“You have lipstick all over your face,” Danny tells. He licks his thumb, moving to rub it against Matt’s chin.

 

Matt recoils right away, protesting, “Gag! Get away.”

 

Danny rolls his eyes. “I’ve eaten your ass and you won’t let me fucking wipe makeup off you with spit?”

 

“I don’t make the rules I just follow them,” Matt replies, standing. He holds his hands out to Danny, who accepts them. Matt groans as he tosses his weight back, pulling Danny to his feet. 

 

Danny giggles, starting to collect the makeup and return it to the case. “What rules?”

 

“I do not control the phobia!” Matt retorts, chuckling himself. “Do you want to take a shower?”

 

“You can,” Danny offers, his back turned as he’s bent over, packing up the makeup. He’d just zipped the case, thankfully, as Matt slaps him on the ass with one hand and reaches between his thighs with the other, fondling the crotch of his jeans as he kisses his neck harshly. Danny drops the case immediately, melting into Matt’s touch.

 

“It’d be better if you joined me,” Matt says lowly. His hand goes from Danny’s crotch to start unfastening his pants, easily undoing the button and coaxing down the zipper without looking. His hand crams beneath the waistband of his underwear, grasping him and starting to stroke him, his other hand now clawing into his hip. He starts to walk slowly, guiding Danny gently to his bed. He briefly pulls away, his hands on either of Danny’s hips as he turns his boyfriend to sit on the foot of the bed facing him. Danny grins as he watches Matt sink to his knees, grabbing ahold of Danny’s pants and bringing them down his legs. He tosses them to the side, kissing the inside of one of his thighs sloppily, leaving a bruise on the sensitive skin. He continues to place these wet bites up his leg, then bringing his tongue over his lower stomach, just above the waistband of his underwear. 

 

Danny’s threading his fingers through Matt’s hair, watching as Matt then pulls Danny’s shirt off, kissing him on the lips before continuing the trail of kisses across his collarbones. He gradually eases his way down his chest, to his waist, to his hips. He smirks as he already sees Danny’s erection, desperate enough to break through the constraints of the briefs, pressed against the lap of fabric. His hand goes in his mouth before he caresses one of Danny’s nipples, thumbing across the bud of flesh as his other hand rises up the leg of his briefs, finding the head and starting to tease it. He taps against the precum starting to drip, the fluid thick and tacky against his skin. 

 

“Danny?” Matt asks, his hand going painstakingly slow as he starts to stroke his boyfriend.

 

Moaning gently, Danny’s head falls back as his eyes close. His voice sounds floaty and far gone as he replies, “Yes?”

“You’re going to have lipstick all over your cock,” Matt tells, miraculously keeping both his tone and expression flat. 

 

Danny laughs, assuring, “I don’t mind.”

 

Matt’s hand drifts from Danny’s nipple to move up and down his thigh, his nails dimpling into the skin gently. “How much do you want to bet I can get you naked with only my mouth?”

 

“It’s a bet I’ll lose,” Danny tells softy, his eyes fluttering open and meeting Matt’s for a fleeting moment. He grins, his eyes closing again.

 

“Would the leg be easier, or the waistband?” Matt asks, removing his hand from inside the briefs and kneading against his lap overtop the thin barrier. 

 

Danny chuckles. “Better try both, just to be safe.”

 

Matt removes his hand, instead gripping Danny’s thigh and teasingly brushing against the skin with his fingertips. He looks up at Danny as he leans forward, his head level with Danny’s navel. He dips down just a bit, his teeth gripping the waistband and lifting it from his olive skin. He starts to ease them down, but finds that the waistband just rolls, refusing to actually remove the underwear. He smirks, instead moving to the thigh that he’s caressing, his tongue dragging against his inner thigh and placing a biting kiss. He again takes the fabric in his mouth, gradually pulling them down as he brings his head down Danny’s body. He manages to get them to Danny’s thighs after a few tries and triumphantly shoves them down with his hands, setting them aside and immediately returning to Danny, his tongue teasing the head. 

 

Danny whines, biting his lower lip as his breath trembles. Matt slowly wraps his lips around the tip, sliding down so slowly, too slowly. When Danny grabs a chunk of his hair and pushes him down, he merely catches his breath and pulls off entirely, scolding, “Naughty.” He licks Danny’s lower torso, just above his cock and below his navel.

 

“Don’t tease,” Danny whines, his fingernails clutching the bedsheets. 

 

Matt sinks back onto his cock, sliding up and down a few times before dragging his tongue heavily against the underside of his shaft. When he reaches the head, he laps at the frenulum a few times, his tongue then circling the head before taking it all again. His one hand is clawed into the soft skin of Danny’s hip, a few of his fingers pointing down towards himself and a couple wrapping around Danny’s body. He grips the skin tightly as he feels Danny inch closer to climaxing; he can not only hear his pitch rise as his stuttering breath begins, but he can see his thighs tremble. He finishes not long after, and after Matt swallows, he trails kisses up until he’s laying over Danny, smiling at him. Danny grins back, a light sweat glistening over him. Matt kisses him, and after the two gaze at each other for a moment, Danny suggests, “Shower?”

 

Matt stands, allowing Danny to cross in front of him. As Danny leaves for the bathroom, Matt pulls his pants down and abandons them, jogging to keep up with Danny and then smacking his bare ass, telling, “You read my mind.”

  
  



	45. Chapter 45

Standing in the corridor of the house, Danny kisses Matt, both of their skin still glistening with the light gloss of water. Matt strings a few fingers through Danny’s wet hair, tugging through the small tangles that have already begun to set in. Grinning against his lips, Matt’s other hand glides down his side, squeezing onto his hip for a fleeting moment. Under the poor disguise of his towel, Matt can feel Danny start to harden against his thighs, making his own member begin to wake up. As they make out, Danny’s hands run up Matt’s torso, teasing both of his nipples with tracing thumbs. Without a warning, Matt strips Danny’s towel off, letting it fall to the floor and smacking his ass once, smirking as he feels the taut skin bounce back like a gun recoiling. 

Danny whimpers a bit, his hips twitching forward as Matt hits him, and after Matt slaps him a third time, digging his nails into the curved skin for good measure, Danny moves his kisses to bite down Matt’s neck. He starts grinding his hips against Matt’s, desperate to get friction going between them. Danny’s growing hard on almost manages to slip beneath the loose tie of Matt’s towel, but he doesn’t remove it, just keeps pressing himself against Matt until his boyfriend’s erection rivals his. 

Matt feels Danny’s hair slip down Matt’s chest as Danny starts to suck on one of his nipples. Matt sighs, both of his hands sinking into Danny’s ass and kneading, less for the arousal, more so just to ground himself. Danny moves from one nipple to the other, a thin string of spit trailing from his full lower lip as he does so. He laps against the responsive flesh, smiling when he feels it starting to stiffen over all the attention. 

Matt’s eyes flutter shut as his head begins to ease back. It’s not a moment after that they shoot open. It happens slow enough for him to notice, but not fast enough for him to react or mutter a warning to his boyfriend, who is still easing down Matt’s stomach with kisses and is probably a hip twitch away from dropping to his knees. All he can do is grimace, Danny (thankfully) jumping up and blocking most of his sight as the yelling begins. 

“Oh, shit! Sorry!”

“Jesus!” Danny exclaims, grabbing his towel from the ground and wrapping it around his waist hastily. “You ever knock?!”

Danny’s mom is standing inside the door, a hand still slapped over her eyes as she replies, “It’s my fucking house!” 

Danny’s face is almost a darker scarlet than Matt’s as he nudges Matt towards his bedroom wordlessly, his knuckles white around the knot of his towel. “We’re going in my room. I thought I’d let you know so you don’t barge in again.”

As she blindly stumbles over to the counter and sets down her purse, his mom shoots back, “Don’t act like I haven’t wiped and powdered that little ass for years. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”

Danny pushes his weight against the door, closing it behind him with a sigh. He looks at Matt, his skin still crimson and his eyes wide with exasperation. “Sometimes I wish my mom was more like yours.”

Matt shakes his head. “Trust me, you don’t.”

“I do.”

“Your mom doesn’t talk about her son pissing himself like it’s a sketch on Saturday Night Live,” Matt counters. 

Danny chuckles at that, the color in his face finally beginning to return to normal. “To be honest, I’m glad she walked in when she did. If she was even one minute later…”

Matt whistles lowly. “I would’ve been balls deep… the noise alone…”

Danny slaps him in the arm, making Matt whine. “Have I always dated a pig?”

“A dick pig,” Matt murmurs. 

Danny sighs. “Well, that effectively killed any desire I had to have sex for like… a week.”

“We could see what Brian’s are up to,” Matt suggests.

“Facetime them,” Danny suggests. “God knows we can’t show up announced.”

Matt laughs. “Yeah, we learned the  _ hard _ way.”

Danny cracks up, then yelling as he throws himself on top of Matt. “Don’t you fucking dare!” He starts tickling Matt, his fingers racing like crazy up and down his sides. 

Matt whines in between laughs, stammering as he tries to catch his breath, “D-Danny! Danny, stop!” He tries to kick at Danny, tears welling in his eyes when he finally manages to push him away. He sits up, his sides aching from all the laughing as he wipes his eyes. Danny goes to hug him and Matt dramatically flinches away, joking, “Back off!” Danny puts a hand on his shoulder, making Matt grab his wrist and pull it off himself, telling, “Uh-uh!” He finally rolls his eyes in defeat as Danny lays his head on his shoulder, planting a quick peck against his hair. Besides, he’s too busy Facetiming Brian to worry about it. 

  
  



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